~ Jay Hopler, Green Squall (YaleUniversity Press 2006)
To sound the redundant horn of praise, I loved this book—why else would I waste my time putting a poem up here?He has something that I admire that I can’t quite pin down—his unpindownability maybe…
~ Campbell McGrath, American Noise (Ecco Press 1993)
I absolutely loved this book—this poem, an untitled prologue type of poem, in particular.He’s got that Whitman flair I wish I had.Oh well, maybe in another writing life.
This is my second posting from Astoria and another good one at that. The concept here reminds me of a reduced version of Galway Kinnell’s “Shoes of Wandering” section from Book of Nightmares. In this particular version of the afterlife, I’ll be a sock, unmatched, argyle, footless. How bout you?
I enjoyed this book.Here’s what I said back when I read it the first time: “A significant portion of the poems have brilliant voices, sharp wit, and eerie lives that seem to continue outside of the book.At his best he has a sensibility about the characters with relation to their environments that borders on perfection.”
I wish I were rich. Rodney Jones, Amie Whittemore and I were discussing how best to remain pure in this gladhandy, backsliding world of ours. First, I said, your name has to be Frederick Seidel. And second, you can’t ever, ever work in the environs of the contemporary literary scene. I believe this to be the case.
