Book Review: Zucker's _Eating in the Underworld_

Eating in the Underworld by Rachel Zucker

rating: 4 of 5 stars

I worship Rachel Zucker.

I wouldn't say I worship _Eating in the Underworld_, though.

This poetry collection was beautifully crafted, perfectly lyrical, and all-around well-written, but it wasn't exactly for me.

I like that Zucker puts a new spin on the Persephone/Hades myth, but sometimes it felt more like a project than a book that could change my life forever. However, without this book and the grappling between mother and daughter/child I'm not sure _The Last Clear Narrative_ would have been so life changing.

If anything _Underworld_ gives me hope that my younger poems are building towards something grand.

I'm happy I've read and I own _Underworld_. It is after all written by one of my fav poets...


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Book Review: Bonomo's _Installations_

Installations by Joe Bonomo

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Bonomo's _Installations_ is mysteriously gorgeous and intellectually haunting. Each prose poem (beginning with the lines: "A large, well-lit, white-walled room. You walk to a red line painted on the floor.") serves as an installation art piece that is examined by a "you." These pieces (the poems/prose/memoir) replicate the art pieces in an innovative way--one that realistically enacts viewing art into written word. Like viewing art sometimes I just moved on to the next piece without hesitation, sometimes I lingered, other times I obsessed and forgot the time, and almost always I acknowledged rigorous thought and felt some kind of emotion.



Note to self: One emotion I felt several times was jealousy (over the form, language, concept) but, of course, the kind that is from the most loving place.



Like minimalist contemporary art some of the pieces "seemed" easy or underwhelmed or repetitive in a non-repetitive way. Though these qualities could be viewed as shortcomings, they appear to be intentional, at least in my reads. These are aspects I would like to hear Bonomo discuss, though.



The pieces (as identified by their last lines) that I gravitated towards were: "6:47," "Planes and birds glide in eternal gravity," "Your body, in mourning and great reluctance, received you back," "With history in front of you, you feel a tingle at the back of your neck, and you turn around," and "You want to open that drawer."



My all-time fav for its ability to articulate my own art viewing emotions most closely: "What is that small bloom of dread in your chest that you can't name?"



_Installations_ is full of real and surreal surprises, lockets of images, and invitations to join in. And join in, you should.






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Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain

Review of Kitchen Confidential

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Written in the sarcastic, harshly honest, vulgarly funny tone that viewers of "No Reservations" have grown accustomed to, _Kitchen Confidential_ is nothing short of fabulous. Of all the chefs out there, I trust his opinion on what knives to buy--mostly because he's leave pot or pan unturned in this memoir. The only draw back for me was that it felt a little repetitive at times--perhaps that was intentional. Regardless, a must read for those interested in food, travel, and hilarity.


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The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
While I want to buy this book I'm scared to.



Pollan's _The Omnivore's Dilemma_ is an informative and thoughtful reflection on food and where it comes from in our modern culture. Pollan splices journalistic accounts of his own experiences buying food, working on a farm, hunting and gathering and buying a cow with countless other sources to help credit his arguments and with historical information about food to inform us of the four meals possible in our culture: the processed, organic, grass-fed, and hunted/gathered.



Even though I thoroughly enjoyed the processed, organic, and grass-fed sections, I wasn't as much of a fan of the hunted/gathered section. This particular section seemed a bit over the top for me, especially as a wife of a hunter and fisherman. I've become accustomed to seeing my meal in its dead form as well as in the necessary butchering stage so it can be eaten and discussing it during the meal in terms of the exact hunt, location, weather, circumstances related to the specific day that meal was caught. So when Pollan talks about hunting it's a little over-sensationalized for me. However, I appreciate his newly found respect for hunting.



Some of my fav passages which I'm putting in the review because I couldn't mark up the library book:



page 215 Arthur Koestler's definition of "holon": "an entity that from one perspective appears self-contained whole, and from another a different part."



page 248 The Weston Price Foundation



page 254 "A protest of what exactly is harder to pin down...expense to opt out...distrusting Walmart...wanting to keep their food dollars in town..."



page 257 "Local food, as opposed to organic, implies a new economy as well as a new agriculture--new social and economic relationships as well as ecological ones. It's a lot more complicated."



page 264 descriptions of the grass-fed meal.



page 281 description of his food journey in the simplest of terms "...to look into the food chains that support us as I could look, and recover the fundamental biological realities that the complexities of modern industrialized eating keep from our view."



page 285 "'Nature,' as Woody Allen character says in _Love and Death_, 'is like an enormous restaurant."



By far the most hopeful and mind-blowing part of the book hands-down belongs to the Grass-fed section. I can't explain how I would irrationally move to Virginia just to be near to Polyface Farms even though I have found my own quite fabulous grass-farmer here in Ohio--Luginbill Farms.



Why would I be scared to own this book? Because it's made me so much in-the-know that I can't go to the grocery store without being hyper-sensitive and critical about what I'm putting in my cart, emotionally, politically, and psychologically, which then led me to become obsessed with the food I eat at the wide variety of restaurants we patron. The only time I feel content eating now is after we visit the Farmers Market and return with our local fruits and veggies or at Revolver Restaurant where they tell patrons on the menu which farms the food came from. While I'm not sure all the food we buy at the Farmers Markets grows on sustainable farms, I do feel better about buying food straight from our local farmers.



My recommendation is this: If you sincerely want to know what is happening in America's food culture, read this book. You'll be forever changed.



If you want to be able to happily eat whatever you wish without thinking about it, don't read this book. You'll be in the dark, and that will be a happy, easy place to remain.



As much as I sometimes wish I was in the dark, especially so I could enjoy restaurant eating again, I'm happy I'm in-the-know.






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Dot in the Universe by Lucy Ellmann

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
Once I started understanding and appreciating the experimentation of the blur between first and third person narration, I couldn't put this book down.



The themes/discussions of birth, life, death, love, lust, consumerism, and everything else (I'm leaving out a lot) are incredibly well written.



I laughed many times and other times thought Lucy Ellman actually had entered my brain, especially during Dot's realization and reflection on death and bodily functions.



This book is hardcore, I'd say. Not for the weak in stomach or mind. If you read it, be ready for the vulgar and embrace it. Once you embrace it the book becomes an accurate account of the human experience in its most honest form.


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Absolutely Delightful

Denmark, Kangaroo, Orange by Kevin Griffith

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
An absolutely delightful collection of poems.



Smart and accessible.



Fresh and funny.



Lighthearted and thoughtful.



I adore it. Totally.



While reading I kept thinking if there was a band that could put these poems to music it would be Magnetic Fields.



The highlights: "Your Pants Look Disappointed," "The Kite," "Marriage," and "Coffee."



I whole heartedly recommend this book to those serious about poetry and those who want to like poetry but claim they don't "understand it."






View all my reviews.

Locavore Whore

It took me a month to get through Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life.
Which means I didn't devour it.

Which must mean I savored it.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book with its thoughtful personal essays, well-researched history of food passages, and the fabulous recipes.

Honestly, this book does live up to the hype. I learned a lot about American food culture, how I can be a smarter consumer, and that I'm destined to be become a local foodie (aka locavore). Some of the best parts of the book for me were learning about Slow Food International's Thanksgiving turkey project and Cheesemaking homemade-style, testing the delectable recipes within the book, and reading Chapter 14 about harvesting animals (Yummo!).

With that said sometimes I wanted more from this book. What? I'm not sure. But something I can't quite put my finger on. In the last few chapters, Kingsolver mentions a few items their family still bought at the grocery store, which reassured me that I could trust her as a non-fiction writer. Of course, I trusted her all along, but something about the book seemed off. I told a friend on the phone last night that sometimes I felt like the book was "on par with those new-moms who tell the very-edited birthing story that neglects all the pain, suffering, and grossness." Of course, Kingsolver does fill us in some of the deets regarding animal harvesting, animal cruelty on factory farms, and turkey mating, but sometimes I felt like the book made it sound really easy to be a farmer. What about the crops that didn't go? Or what about getting through the craving of oranges and citrus? I guess I just wanted to see some failure or some loss of hope. The skeptic in me questioned Kingsolver's undying optimism. If she really is that optimistic, then rad; I'd love to meet her and have her rub off on me.

Apart from my skepticism, so much can be gained from this book. It's motivated me to buy local even more than I already was and to rethink the produce or goods I must buy at the store (i.e. flour and sugar) as well as the wanted items I need to learn to not buy (i.e. Reese's cups). I mean just look at this all local food asparagus and feta cheese frittata FD and I made for lunch the other day; it was gorgeous, tasty, and filled me with pride that I knew where our food came from and love for our Ohio farmers and animal harvesters! I honestly could taste the difference in quality, even in the eggs. I'm committed to continue buying from our local farmers markets in BG, Perrysburg, Findlay, Toledo, and other Ohio farms all summer and fall as well as hopefully from certain farms throughout the winter. Also, my new goals are to buy veggies only that are season and not ones shipped from FL or CA that are out of season locally AND to find and buy grass-fed animals.

I think what the book failed to focus on (though, it was mentioned a few times in Hopps contributions) that created a little crook of void for me was do what you can where you are. I'd love to start a veggie patch and garden more, but right now it's not realistically possible. However, there's always community gardens to look into as a start. While one day I know I will garden, today I know for sure I can support local farms, buy canned good from Toledo canneries, and reassess what I buy at the grocery or even rethink which grocery store I choose to buy from. Little steps are sometimes just as important as an all out huge commitment. I'm pretty good with my food practices: we haven't eaten fast food (besides Qdoba, which I can't give up) for almost one year; we've been buying organic for several years; we're thoughtful about how each food comes to our table. We're starting and we're trying. I just feel like it would be too extreme & set us up for failure to swear off all "corporate food" or restaurants that don't serve local ingredients. However, we will start requesting local ingredients on comment cards and supporting more local restaurants that use local ingredients such as Revolver Restaurant.

One day I know we'll really be off and running, and by that I mean I hope (fingers crossed) our green thumbs work and our turkeys hatch babies.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle earns five farm-conscious Hello Kittys. Just be prepared to become obsessed with food and the rethinking of food while reading this book.

♫ While My Puppy Gently Sleeps...♫

Right now a puppy is sleeping on the couch in my office, and I'm quite content.

We attended our first puppy play-date, and BooBoo is wiped out. Perfect. Now I can get some much needed blogging in.

While I didn't win the 6word Twitter contest, I did win a different Twitter Zappos contest, which yielded a higher reward: a $150 gift card to Zappos.com! Yippeeee! The Twitter contest from @zappos_alfred was "Best advice I've gotten is from my Mom. What's best advice your mom gave u? I'll pick 2 replies for free shoes." Here's the winning advice I got from Hons: " Winners are: @HelloKittyAMR-mom told her marry your best friend and @katgil-mom told her to always think positive. I will direct msg you."

(Being a part of Twitter pays off, dear friends!)

Because I did marry my best friend, I gave him the gift card for a new pair of shoes. Ahhhh! Cute--I know.

I must admit, though, I bought myself a new pair of shoes too...I'm addicted...And I blame my no new clothes and shoes resolution for it. I will NEVER make that resolution evereverever again.

Still feeling run-down lately and pretty emotional. After Lemon Cadet's comment that I should take a pregnancy test, I must let all of you know I'm not preggars. I'm just crazy, which apparently is one pink line. Speaking of Lemon Cadet, Baby Lemon is here, and she's precious! Congrats Lemon Family!

I've been feeling a lot better over the past few days. Finishing my book review for Literary Review Magazine helped and being home again helped a lot too. I'm finding the older I get the less I like traveling. Perhaps I'm becoming a crotchety hermit. Or perhaps I'm just tired of traveling almost every weekend. It's exhausting and expensive. And as much as I love our families sometimes I just want to be home doing nothing but reading, blogging, and walking the dog. It's hard to be so close to our families and so far away in terms of distance, but it's life so I must try to handle traveling better. Somehow.

The highlights of seeing our families this past weekend was that my sister visited us for two nights and one day, which was really nice, and we had really nice Mother's Day celebrations with all of our moms, and I got to see the Cortes' fam pics with them and Flat Stan visiting the free stamp and Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame as well as Flat Stan sitting on a kid potty. Good times! (Suz, send me those pics ASAP!)

Speaking of Flat Stan, I'm willing host him if anyone out there needs a Flat Stan host...I adore him.

Just a two more things real quick before my sleepy head wakes up:

There's a dog park right here in Bowling Green! Does anyone take their dog there? It looks a little deserted...More on the dog park situation soon when it's not raining and I can investigate more.

And this weekend come on out for the Poetry and Yoga Alicia's Voice Event. We'd love to see you!

The Partial Summer To Do List

Schedule Dentist Appointments -- Check.

Clean Lawn Furniture -- Check.

Yoga every morning -- Check.

Twitter & convince everyone to join Twitter -- 1/2 Check.

Why and Later Poetry Reading/ Alicia’s Voice Benefit Yoga Classes Promo -- 1/2 Check.

Two Review review -- 1/2 Check.

Puppy Playdates.

Puppy Classes & Training.

CheeBurger CheeBurger date w/ FD.

Shop for Mother’s Day, Father's Day, and birthday cards.

Why and Later Poetry Reading/ Alicia’s Voice Benefit Yoga Classes.

Revolver din-din with Car, FD, me, and a special guest.

Rilo Kiely w/ Stokey!

CTLT Clicker Training Sessions.

Cedar Point for my bday! Yay!

June 18 Alicia’s Voice Golf Outing – JOIN US!

Harbor Grand meet-up with KA. Yay!

Visit families and friends!

ENG 110 syllabus and lesson plans.

READ (about 150 books / 1 down) & post book reviews.

WRITE (as many essays or poems as possible.)

WATCH TV.

WATCH MOVIES.

Catch Up on Gossip Blogs & FAFA.

Nap.

Do “things” not on any to-do list (i.e. be adventurous and spontaneous!)

The Last Town on Earth: A Book Review

I read The Last Town on Earth by Thomas Mullen for the BGSU Common Reading Experience Book Selection Committee. Well, actually I read it twice: first, a very quick skim and hated, then again very closely and realized it actually could be a pretty good CRE choice. As for a "fun" read, if you like historical fiction, it's worth it. If you don't, you could skip this one and not really miss out on anything. Based on how it's written, I bet there will be a movie soon.

In terms of exploring values, which is one of the criterion for the CRE, this book is perfect. Virtually all the main characters and some of the secondary characters are confronted by values choices at some point in this book, and the author writes the book in a clear enough way that even reader who weren't experienced at picking up on undertones could see how the characters' values were being challenged. From Philip to Graham to Mr. Worthy to Frank to Rebecca, each character struggles between what is right and what is wrong in terms of war time choices and choices regarding an epidemic. I've read many possible CRE books, but this one is by far the most direct about clearly exploring values.

Also, The Last Town on Earth is extremely interdisciplinary. Not only could I see academic in the humanities being able to connect to this book but also the hard sciences (there is a lot of medical references, which also explore the different values decisions people in the medical field face in times of need), the social sciences (based on how character interact with one another and themselves), historians (the 1918 setting makes this a perfect lead into discussions on World War 1), folks in business and business administration (there is a lot of discussion about running a mill, which could lead to discussion on entrepreneurship and doing "what's right" for a company), and many more. This book is a strong choice in order to satisfy almost all disciplines.

I wonder, too, if it would be easy to get the author to visit and if he wouldn't cost too much because this book was published in 2006 and it's the author's first book...Does anyone know how this writer is with students?

The one main drawback for me was the last part of this four-part book. I found Part 4 to be over-dramatic in way novels that are written intentionally for the purpose of striking a movie deal are. The author doesn't tie up the loose threads neatly, but some of the action is a little over the top and feels a bit "untrue" to the characters, especially Philip, the main character.

Generally, I'm really skeptical of endings to novels anyways, but this one really fuels my skepticism's fire, which was one reason why I hated the book so much on my first read.

After a closer read, though, I really feel that this book merits the CRE's serious consideration. It is a easy read--few "big" words and really strong images and scenes that most readers can easily visual and understand--in addition to it being values-based, interdisciplinary, and contemporary.

Based on this criteria, I think someone looking for something to read would find this book a quick read. Honestly, it's not really my cup of tea, but I feel like I'm a better person for reading it because it got me thinking about our current war on terror, our troops, and how history does repeat itself.

3 out of 5 fearful-of-epidemics Hello Kittys.

About Time

Natasha Trethewey's Native Guard is (I swear) one of the BEST collections of poetry I have read in a long time.

This collection is seemingly simple. The language is clear, stripped down, and imagistic. The narratives are straightforward and very easy to follow, especially for those who don't read much poetry "because it is hard to understand."

But for those who LOVE poetry and understand it, Native Guard is virtually flawless. Each poem is layered in so many different ways one could read the book straight-through in 45 minutes and be pleased with the read. But if one re-reads it again and again, the layers start shedding--in terms of form, fixed form, line breaks, manuscript organization, response to New Criticisms, etc., etc., etc.

Get this: the formal poetry is so veiled by the gorgeous language that I almost didn't even realize it was written in form. How I've longed to be able to pull off that trick!

This book is a throw back to older contemporary poetry--in the good way. It has that pure, honest integrity of Sharon Olds, Jane Kenyon, and, dare I say, Robert Bly.

In other words, Native Guard is sincerely unpretentious. It's not full of experimentation for the sake of experimentation. It's a collection of poetry that is simple--in the most complex sense of word, not at all complicated to be complicated.

I wholehearted recommend Native Guard to poetry readers and non-poetry readers. Its poems about loss, history, the South, race, religion, and humanity are accessible yet exceptionally well-crafted.

This book clearly deserved to win a Pulitzer Prize, and I'm excited to see what Trethewey will do in the future.

The gems in this collection: "Photograph: Ice Storm, 1971," "Myth," "Scenes From A Documentary History of Mississippi," "Native Guards," and "Southern History."

5 out of 5 can-you-believe-it-I'm-so-skeptical-about-poetry Hello Kittys.

Two Less Specific Reviews (My Airplane and Trip Reads)

I read Flannery's The Weather Makers for the BGSU Common Reading Experience Committee, and I think it's a great book selection for the Common Read--and one that I would recommend to readers interested in the environment.

Like Field Notes by Kolbert, this book tackles the issue of global warming by providing background info, but Weather Makers is much more personable. Flannery gives his own impressions on global warming and its history AND proposes possible solutions to global warming. Kolbert's Field Notes was a saturation of scientific support for global warming, whereas Weather Makers takes scientific facts and makes them very real on a human level.

I wouldn't say this book is a page turner, but it is a lot less overwhelming to those not all that scientifically-minded than Kolbert's Field Notes and it leaves one feeling less saturated too.

I vote for it as next year's common read, and I think it's an important book to read generally speaking.

Four out of five environmentally concerned Hello Kittys.


~

Miranda July's No One Belongs Here More Than You is good, but not as special as I thought it would be. I was expecting something like the works of Sara Pitchard or Aimee Bender. My expectations weren't met. The stories were readable, but after a while I kind of got bored with the first person point of view. And the quirky-ness. I felt like the stories were projecting hipster-indie writing, but they weren't really all that new or fresh. They were different...different, I feel, for the sake of being different.

Maybe I'll back to this book some point later in my life and like it a lot more. But for right now, I felt this collection didn't live up to its hype.

3 out of 5 mildly amused Hello Kittys.

~

The best bookstore we visited in Utah: BYU's University Bookstore. They had the BEST selection of contemporary poetry I have EVER seen in one location.

~

More deets on the trip coming soon!

Yo, Yo, Yo! Check These Out (or Not)...

Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change by Elizabeth Kolbert is awesome book that made me really think the history and evidence of Global Warming. I just wanted it to be more personable. It's almost too full of facts and journalistic writing that sometimes I couldn't help to get bored or tired. Yes, Global Warming exists. Now I want to see a book that makes Global Warming more "human." In other words, I want to see a book that meshes the scientific evidence of GW to human life. Anybody know of one?

3 out of 5 environmentally aware Hello Kittys.





~



Honestly, I was more intrigued by the all the research Kate Greenstreet did for case sensitive than the actual writing itself. The narrative, at times, for me, was too disjointed--to the point that it became experimental without any real intention other than that. I comprehend that this book is working with associative connections and extended thinking and it's all about ideas and how narratives overlap (--I get it!--), but I believe writers need to work these experimentations into the writing and that the writing should bring out these things. Ultimately, the writing should come first and be the best aspect of a book, in my humble opinion, not the research. And in my opinion, sadly, that wasn't the case with this book. I reallyreallyreally wanted to LOVE this book because I think the idea of it is utterly amazing. It just wasn't for me.


2 out of 5 disappointed Hello Kittys. 5 out of 5 satisfied-to-have-thought-that-much Hello Kittys, though.

Totally, Totally Biased! (But Really It Is An Awesome Book!)

There's only one thing I can say about Neck of the World:

If I wasn't married to this man, I would find him and marry him.

His poems are imaginative, brilliant, thoughtful, and innovative.

And he's even more so.

Ten out of five very proud Hello Kittys.

Kick Me Silly

To say I LOVE Paul Feig's Kick Me is an understatement.

I LOVE this book so much it's one of the main reasons I was procrastinating on grading. Or I should say it kept me from grading.

In other words, I had to finish it before I could do my job.

That's pretty darn good, huh?

Remember all the stupid shit that happened to you in school? I once walked around with toilet paper on my shoe for three periods before anyone told me to look at my shoe. And don't even get me started on the time I puked up Snapple Green Tea because I had three BEFORE homeroom. Or the time I peed in a McDonald's cup. Or the many times I started my period during some pointless class and prayed I wouldn't bleed through because teachers back then never let anyone go to the bathroom.

That's this book. Only Paul Feig's writing style is WAY funnier than mine.

God bless him.

And he is the creator of the best show EVER: Freaks and Geeks.

Seriously, readers, you MUST read this book. Read it when you need a pick-me-up. Read it when you need to feel like someone finally understands your dorkiness. Read it when you want to feel like a kid again. Read it just for some old-fashioned giggles.

READ IT FOR CRYIN' OUT LOUD!!! Especially, you, Stokes! You would hug this book like it was your preppy, popped collar dog.

Five out of five proud-to-still-be-an-embarrassed-geek Hello Kittys.

People Do Care about Books...

I've been reading OpenCulture since Terence introduced me to it at the beginning of the summer.

So when the folks of OpenCulture asked readers for their favorite books, I couldn't resist adding to the list!

And, guess what (?!), my comments made it on their post with the compiled list!!!

Maybe I am special after all. ;)

Some More Lovin' (Or My New Favorite Adjective)

Usually I devour books.

I savored this one. Really savored it.

Maurice Manning's Bucolics is boss. For real.

The poems in this collection read like the Psalms. They're lyrical, mysterious, gorgeous, and divine. Literally: theses poems are mediations on the relationship between God (Boss) and one inquisitive human.

Manning's choice to not use punctuation beautifully replicates the human consciousness--the speed of emotion, question, reflection, and praise.

Many times these poems reminded me of Emily Dickinson, in terms of their music, pacing, and leaps.

I adored them all, but especially XVIII, XXVIII, XXXI, XLVII, LV, and LXII.

How on earth could I not love a speaker with so many questions?

Sometimes I creeped myself out thinking that Manning could read minds, and he read all the questions in my mind and then wrote this book.

I do have a lot of questions I ask Boss. Unfortunately, my phrasing isn't as imagistic as Manning's.

5 out of 5 boss Hello Kittys.

ps Katherine and Terence, I really think you would dig this book! Of course, everyone should read it!

A Short-Short Book Review

Carrier's Running After Antelope taught me a lot about short-short inter-connective essays. I admired his honesty and humor. For some reason, though, something was lacking for me--just a tad of something. And I haven't yet figured out what "that something" is...

3 out of 5 Antelope-costumed Hello Kittys.

Click here Carrier on This American Life, my fav NPR show.

Rainy Sundays Are the Best

After obsessively adding books to my goodreads this gloomy morning, I spent the rest of this rainy day in comfy "pirate pants" (as FD calls them) and a cute tee, but more so I was in bed, under very soft Ralph Lauren sheets, reading all day. (Yes, I am even a label whore about my bedding and towels.)

I felt so content. It reminded me of my grad school days. The ones when I stayed inside all day and only thought about books and writing, besides food. I loved those days, especially when I wasn't hungover...no, wait, when I was hungover...no, when I wasn't...

Though, I would never be able to read the two books I finished today if I was hungover, so thank God I was sober as a shower. Make that a rain shower.

Adjectives to describe Kate Northrop's Things Are Disappearing Here:
gorgeous, subtle, complex, stripped-down, hearty-substance, challenging, disturbing (in a good way)...

Seriously, this was one of my favorite reads of the summer. Northrop's poems are threaded like something delicate but really they're elfish rope. I envision them as cinematic, moving backwards, a disappearing. And after several rereads, I discovered layers and layers, more and more disturbing details that distort the over-current of seemingly simple moments, simple language, simple images. In other words, these poems are like the Atlantic Ocean; it looks nice for a swim but watch out for the rip tides.

My favorite poems: "The Dog," "The Reconstruction Team," "Lines," "Three Women," "A Glimpse of You, A Vision," "The Countess," ... Really, I should just list every poem in the book.

As I was reading her book I totally kept thinking to myself, "If only I could write like this..."

I was so jealously happy while reading it.

Without a doubt, 5 out of 5 Hello Kittys.

~

I already knew I was an idiot.

After reading Larrissa Szporluk's new collection Embryos & Idiots, I realize now I'm an embryo and an idiot.

Szporluk's shit is so brilliant that I don't feel completely ready to comment on it.

Mostly because I'm still like, "WTF?!"

How does she do it? Make logic out of crazy-fast-musical language?

Again, I was jealous but, even more so, happy.

However, I feel like I need to drink a case of wine and smoke a bunch of crack in order to "get it."

Maybe I will be hungover tomorrow...

Too bad it's supposed to be sunny and 91...

And I have yoga class at 9 a.m....

4 out of 5 jacked-up Hello Kittys.

Perhaps The Most Clear Narrative Ever...

Rachel Zucker's The Last Clear Narrative is the bomb! Exclamation point!

Her second collection of poems, probably, has been the most influential collection I've read this summer. It's in a close tie with Spahr's Response. It definitely has informed my non-fiction writing the most.

The Last Clear Narrative is an intellectual autobiography of Zucker's experiences with herself knowledge, marriage, pregnancies, childbirth, death, and motherhood. These aren't just your straight-forward confessional poems, though. Zucker meshes memory with fragmented narrative and continually comments on narrative (or lack thereof) in order to craft brilliant and accurate poems. Much like Carly's book steam sequence, Zucker draws on second (or third generation) memory--as defined by my friend KK--the memory of children of survivors of trauma, essentially--in this case, of the Holocaust. In fact, as I was reading Zucker's book, I kept thinking to myself that I should have read it right after I read Carly's book. They would have made quite a pair.

Of course, I'm fascinated with Zucker's notions of memory and narrative b/c I'm obsessing about both of those things as I work on my sister essays.

There are many other glowing attributes in this collection: the sarcastic humor, the unpretentious language, the gorgeous music, the visceral honesty, the thoughtful logic, the control of white space and lack of punctuation, the dead-on pacing, the kick-ass punch of so many single lines...

Normally, I devour books, but this one I savored for a few days. It tastes so good.

I feel like there is so much I'm leaving out. I talked with KA about it last night, and I think I was more articulate then. (Don't you hate it when that happens?)

Here are a few of my fav lines:

"...I tend to doubt
his hazy reportage." (page 2)

"You happened
and happen to be here--
where I am
which changes and is always,
from my point of view, first person." (page 5)

"...I'd like to describe myself as she
but am only myself and you--not separate
or symbiotic..." (page 43)

" The essay is too easy
to dissemble. The sentence
sickens, then dismisses:" (page 45)

"when will I measure my life
by the by or sentence again" (page 50)

" ....to express self or not self
to unimagine the house it-self is no new idea" (page 70)

(Of course, I'm biased to these line for my own selfish reasons.)

My fav poems:
"Endnotes for What the Living Look Like"
"I Cannot Write Essays, Will Not Be Famous"
"What I Want You to See Is She When Not Here As In Now"

One of my new favorite poets:
Rachel Zucker

5 out of 5 fragmented Hello Kittys

OMG, I so HAVE TO BUY her new collection when it comes out in October!