Reading Roundup
On Metre Maids in 2012 we celebrated some awesome poets, collections and resources. It was a great first year for the blog, and although it slowed at the end, we’re prepping for a big 2013. Keep your eyes peeled.
Cloud of Ink by L. S. Klatt released in 2011 by University of Iowa Press gives in and shares its secrets with us. This collection knows shape and precision, is evocative in imagery and narrative. On the surface, these poems are clever and spirited, but delving deeper below surface reveals darker places.
‘Fieldstones marks the graves
but our names are not engraved. Horses loosed in the field;
their bliss defends against horseflies which seem like
blackberries with wings. A tree
grows where there once was a rudder; the tailpiece
that crash-landed.’
Injecting Dreams into Cows by Jessy Randall released in 2012 by Red Hen Press. What I love about Randall’s collection is the ability to shift to and fro, from hilarious to the personal, to quaint, etc. What I also love about this collection, is the first poem ‘Metaphor’ is an absolute killer, like that one opening line that just gets your poetic pulse going:
‘A duck is like the moon
because a kid can point at both.’
This collection also features a poem that describes taking a poncho off in a really sexy way. It also features some great sci-fi poems with robots! Don’t miss out on the robots! But also, it’s just really good, guys!
100 Poem Challenge by Jen Campbell , released in 2011 as a self-published collection where Campbell punched out 100 poems within 48 hours to raise money for EEC, a degenerative eye condition which she is both passionate about and a sufferer. This little book is an absolutely gem. She asked people on Twitter to give her inspirational words to inspire each poem. You can view them here at www.100poemweekend.blogspot.com . Jen Campbell is also the creator of Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops which is hilarious and can be found here: http://jen-campbell.blogspot.com.au/ .
#36
Contrary to modern belief
being a werewolf
did not make him
a popular kid at school.
[tag word: WEREWOLF]
#52
Tell me all you know about
the moonlight in the kitchen.
How it moves across
and changes.
About the paleness
of our skin – and the
soap suds up your arms
[tag word: MORPH]
#77
December slept / within sealskin boots. / Weather
hibernating / inner body clocks. / Frozen egg
timers. / Cornflower blue. / Rough bearskin walls.
[tag word: COMPASS]
Fiona Wright’s Knuckled released from Giramondo Publishing in August 2011. So, I’m a little slow to the field with this one but no matter the release date, collections still roll on. This was certainly a stunning collection. The title of the collection mirrors the sparse language, which is also reminiscent of Melbourne writing. Knuckled, as in curled tightly, a fist, the way fruit grows, a certain type of ugliness and something which is, at best, unafraid of itself. Many poems affix themselves my home state, Melbourne and evoke place memories. You can find a great piece of ‘On Writing’ by Wright here: http://www.killyourdarlingsjournal.com/2011/10/on-writing-fiona-wright/
Whilst not the directly subject of poetry, this tiny book very much delves into the corridors of poetry via passion. You may enjoy Melbourne University Press’ quirky collection, On Passion penned by Dorothy Porter and released as part of ‘Little Books on Big Themes’ in 2010. Porter ruminates on the passion that lies within her poetry and the way it was formed. The blurb adequately sums up the books intent with a quote from Porter: ‘I wonder if some of the most deeply passionate experiences of my life have happened between the covers of a book.’
Share with us what collections you devoured this year and which collections you plan-to-read in 2013?