Bai Hua translated from the Chinese by Fiona Sze-Lorrain Zephyr Press ($15) by John W. W. Zeiser Bai Hua has only published roughly ninety poems in thirty years, but he is a central figure in contemporary Chinese poetry. His poems are full of the passionate intensity that so often accompanies periods of great historic change, […]
Michael Ruby Ugly Duckling Presse ($17) by Marthe Reed In American Songbook, Michael Ruby re-mixes the popular music of the twentieth century—blues, jazz, pop, rock, rap—with a poet’s eye and ear for sound- and word-play, pitching the reader, feet tapping and throat humming, through the American musical archive. Channeling Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey, Ella […]
Jen Coleman Trembling Pillow Press ($16) by Jonathan Lohr In an essay Jen Coleman wrote for the Poetic Labor Project website about her work at an environmental advocacy nonprofit, she said “In my job, I use the same words over and over: / Critical. Health. Action. Climate. Water. Toxic. Dollars. Strategic. Now.” This limitation of […]
Desmond Kon Zhicheng-Mingdé Red Wheelbarrow Books ($19.50) by Mandy Pannett The Arbitrary Sign is a poetry sequence that follows the shape of an alphabet; the symbols of twenty-six letters are used as title headings for the keywords of complex philosophical thoughts. If this sounds heavy, know that Desmond Kon Zhicheng-Mingdé’s poems are so rich in […]
INTERVIEWS Where the Blur Occurs: Jay Besemer and Magus Magnus on the Call of the Imaginary The two poets discuss poetry, performance, and how the artist exists in between. Other People’s Stories: A Conversation with Colum McCann Interviewed by Thomas Rain Crowe Irish novelist Colum McCann discusses his novels, his love of poetry, and the […]
By Eric Lorberer It’s a noteworthy threshold for a poet to cross, when myriad skinny volumes get assembled into a Collected Poems. In the case of Ron Padgett, the resulting tome published by Coffee House Press is 840 pages of pure bliss, taking us from the insouciant poet in his youth to the most fun […]