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Controlled Hallucinations by John Sibley Williams

Source: John Sibley Williams
Paperback, 78 pages
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Controlled Hallucinations by John Sibley Williams is a debut collection that breaks down the barriers between reality and fantasy in ways that will remind readers of Salvador Dalí and the surrealists one moment and a spiraling, broken hearted romantic, the next.  These poems are equally raw in emotion and imagery, like in “XXXIX” (page 49), “The knives I display in this poem/cannot even cut an overripe fruit.//When I thrash them wildly/to hold them to your throat, or mine,/when I threaten an old enemy/with a few unsharpened words/”  Violence only appears in some of these poems, but it is never gruesome or overly graphic.  One main technique used throughout the collection resembles slipstream combining the familiar with the unfamiliar.

XII (page 22)

I would like to crochet a mitten
for my future child,
       to warm another's hands
       with the work of my own.

I would like to build a house for someone,
       anyone,
       a stranger,
       from foundation to wafting chimney,
and then smile at the pain
of pressing on the bruises
left from making.

But all I have is a song to lean on,
       an eager voice,
       a white cane
       related to me as stone is to moss,
and I am hoping
this simple attempt at light will suffice.

Unlike unbidden hallucinations, these poems carefully unravel in slow movements to serve as a reminder to the reader that their own lives can and have spiraled until they were pulled back.  Even as movement speeds up in some poems, there is always a moment where that movement stops, providing a perspective for the reader to examine.  Williams’ poems have the aim of making the untranslatable translatable, and the poems draw parallels between each poem’s narrator and the reader’s world.  “IX” (Page 19) seems to partially showcase the need for control in love, but how equally painful trying to keep control can be: “The paper cut on my palm/runs parallel to my love line./They taper off at the same spot,/under my thumb//” evoking the image that control can smother love.

 From "XLV" (page 55)

Let's be moths together
circling the bright eye,
circling and trying to enter,
then retreating as far as darkness allows.

There’s a constant struggle in these poems from the choices made and the choices that could have been made.  Controlled Hallucinations by John Sibley Williams peels back the skin to reveal what’s underneath, but then veils it with sheer fabric to obscure its harshness.  Some of these poems can be puzzling, requiring a couple of reads, while others seem contrived or unfinished.  Overall, the collection is engaging and accessible for more patient readers.

About the Poet:

John Sibley Williams is an award-winning writer of fiction and poetry. He works as Book Marketing Manager of Inkwater Press, as well as a freelance literary agent, and lives in Portland, Oregon. John is the author of Controlled Hallucinations (forthcoming 2013 by FutureCycle Press), as well as seven chapbooks. John is the winner of the 2011 HEART Poetry Award, and finalist for the Pushcart, Rumi, and The Pinch Poetry Prizes. He has served as Acquisitions Manager of Ooligan Press and publicist for various presses and authors, and holds an MFA in Creative Writing and MA in Book Publishing.

This is my 64th book for the 2013 New Authors Challenge.

 

 

 

This is my 27th book for the Dive Into Poetry Challenge 2013.

Solving the World’s Problems by Robert Lee Brewer

I use Grammarly’s plagiarism checker because it works! Have you tried it?

Source: Purchased
Paperback, 92 pages
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Solving the World’s Problems by Robert Lee Brewer is the debut collection of a poet who has spurred inspiration virtually for many years as part of the Writer’s Digest team, and as a debut, it oozes deconstruction, construction, and reflection in each poem’s white spaces in ways that are thought-provoking and eye-opening.  There are love poems, break-up poems, and get back together poems, but the overwhelming theme seems to be that love is the great connector of us all — no matter how successful the relationships ultimately are — and the poet seems to postulate that love can “solve the world’s problems.”  While some of these poems have a pessimistic hint in them, they are balanced with a certain amount of light.

From "Matters of Great Importance" (page xv-xvi)

poets consider which chair
                is going to inspire them
                                  to write the poem

that inspires other people
                  to build chairs and
                                    drive trucks and write poems

Within each poem there is an expansion, an expanse left open for the reader to explore and think about on their own.  While these poems cover well-worn territory at times, each line break and word choice makes them crisp, inspiring the reader to look at the subject anew.  In “worried about ourselves,” the narrator talks of how the moon was once something godly and now is just a chunk of rock floating in space, but toward the latter half of the poem, the new perception is turned on the reader, examining the never-ending analysis of ourselves to the point we begin to believe our own perceptions about reality are true, even when they are not.  Some of the best lines are the simplest, like in “I think the world is a pin cushion” (page 48):

there's a space between everyday matters
that makes someone feel every day matters

But there are more serious moments, moments in which social issues are addressed, such as global warming in “one day we looked for the snow” (page 49) and living in a fast-paced modern world where appearances matter and wars are inevitable — “why I never mention the traffic report” (page 52).  But more interestingly, there is an exploration of the modern world and the perceived increase in connection between humans, but the reality is that we seek these outlets to distance ourselves from one another — walking out the door has never been easier when face-to-face takes a back seat.

Solving the World’s Problems by Robert Lee Brewer is a chance to find ourselves reflected in ourselves and the world around us.  From “the noises that scare us” (page 30):

to uncover and hope no shots are fired
we're not here to find something new        we want
reminded of who we were when the birds

first spoke  our wings dissolve as we age   and

About the Author:

Robert Lee Brewer is Senior Content Editor for the Writer’s Digest Writing Community. He edits books, manages websites, creates electronic newsletters, crafts blog posts, writes magazine articles, participates in online education, and speaks nationally on writing and publishing topics. As a poet, Robert was named Poet Laureate of the Blogosphere in 2010, has been a featured reader at several poetry events around the country, and is the author of Solving the World’s Problems (Press 53). Follow him on Twitter @robertleebrewer.

This is my 63rd book for the 2013 New Authors Challenge.

 

 

 

This is my 26th book for the Dive Into Poetry Challenge 2013.

Pat the Beastie and Love the Beastie by Henrik Drescher

Source: Purchased
Board Book, 11 pages
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Pat the Beastie: A Pull-and-Poke Book by Henrik Drescher is perfect for parents with pre-school-age children just learning about the joys of books and reading.  Paul and Judy have a pet named Beastie, and young readers learn alongside these pint-sized protagonists that it’s not very nice to pull Beastie’s hair or poke his eyes.  There are consequences after these children torment Beastie, and my little one calls this the “boogie nose” book.  Each page is full of interactive fun and colorful pages that pop.  She’s had so much fun with this book, she reads it on the potty and wants it read on the couch before bed, at bedtime, and anytime she feels like it really.  The moral of this little story is to be kind to your pets, but the book is just good old fashioned fun for kids.

Source: Purchased
Board Book, 11 pages
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Love the Beastie: A Spin-and-Play Book by Henrik Drescher is the second of the books, but the first my little one picked out at a bookstore — and she chose it over a monkey puppet, which is rare for her.  Paul and Judy have been forgiven by Beastie and learned a lesson since the last book.  In this one, the siblings take Beastie on some adventures and play games with him.  The book pays homage to the power of forgiveness and the love that owners (especially kids) can share with pets.  The colors are vibrant in this book, and yes there are some funny bits, but the kids are not as nasty, which is a good way for parents to teach the same lessons to their own kids.

About the Author:

Henrik Drescher was born in Copenhagen and immigrated to the United States in 1967. He began a career in illustration as a young man and has been traveling throughout the United States, Mexico, Europe and China, creating massive journals of notes and drawings wherever he went.  Check out his Website.

This is my 62nd book for the 2013 New Authors Challenge.

Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson

Source: Public Library
Hardcover, 297 pages
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Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson is the second book in the Seeds of America series for young adults (see my review of Chains, the first book in the series; the third book is expected in 2014).  ***This review could contain spoilers***

Isabel and Curzon have fled New York and the Locktons to seek out Freedom, but when we again meet up with Curzon, Isabel has fled in search of her sister, Ruth, who is known to be in Charleston.  After taking all of the money they had earned, Curzon has little choice but to make it on his own, and in so doing, runs smack in the middle of a skirmish.  During a standoff between a rebel soldier and a British soldier, Curzon makes a fateful decision that has him enlisted as a soldier under General Washington’s command at Valley Forge.  As winter sets in for the long haul, Anderson deftly paints a picture of the desperate times and weather conditions the rebel forces faced, forcing some to go against army rules and steal food from neighboring farms.

“‘We can mine for iron here?’ Eben asked.

‘No, blunderhead,’ Silvenus said.  ‘This camp is a forge for the army; it’s testing our mettle.  Instead of heat and hammer, our trials are cold and hunger.  Question is, what are we made of?'”  (Page 121)

Curzon finds a home among the soldiers, but he still thinks about Isabel and her fate, wondering why she won’t leave his mind.  As the winter digs in, however, Curzon’s luck changes with it once he’s recognized by Bellingham, who thought him dead in Bridewell Prison.  He becomes again that insolent slave looking for freedom and even longing again for the companionship of the army.  He bristles at his new circumstances and even wages an unspoken war against Bellingham until he realizes that his fate is not all that he holds in his hands.  Anderson has created a believable slave seeking his freedom by any means within his grasp, and his ties to Isabel grow stronger as the battle with the British gets closer.

Forge has a dual meaning in that the army’s mettle, as well as Curzon and Isabel’s, are tested, and these characters must forge ahead and overcome the challenges they face.  In a literal sense, Curzon tries to create a counterfeit of himself and pass himself off as a free man to become a soldier, as well as a key’s likeness to turn the lock on freedom.  Anderson peppers the novel with a number of details (having seen Valley Forge recently, these places were fresh in my mind), and she firmly grasps the intrigue of the time, including the use of slaves as spies for the British, and the internal politicking among Congressmen and generals.  Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson is a solid second book in a series of young adult historical fiction novels about the American Revolution, and in some ways an even better book than the first for its multiple layers, including subplots and dynamic characters.

About the Author:

Laurie Halse Anderson is the New York Times-bestselling author who writes for kids of all ages. Known for tackling tough subjects with humor and sensitivity, her work has earned numerous American Library Association and state awards. Two of her books, Speak and Chains, were National Book Award finalists. Chains also made the Carnegie Medal Shortlist in the United Kingdom.

Laurie was the proud recipient of the 2009 Margaret A. Edwards Award given by YALSA division of the American Library Association for her “significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature…”. She was also honored with the ALAN Award from the National Council of Teachers of English and the St. Katharine Drexel Award from the Catholic Librarian Association.

This is my 5th book for the American Revolution Reading Challenge 2013

Fox Forever by Mary E. Pearson

Source: Shelf Awareness
Hardcover, 304 pages
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Fox Forever by Mary E. Pearson is the third installment in the Jenna Fox Chronicles, please read the first two books as this review will contain spoilers.

Locke Jenkins has left California and his past behind to return a favor, and he has no idea what is in store for him or how much his life will change.  But he can never run too far from what he’s become, but he learns quickly that the Boston he knew and loved is gone forever and that he must cope with his new reality.  In exchange for the help he received in book two, Locke must now return the favor, and it’s more than just making sure a non-pact gets bread at a good price or isn’t beaten by citizens just for being a non-pact.  He connects with the Resistance and is asked a lot of questions about himself and his BioPerfect capabilities.

“Closure.  That’s what I came for but now that I’m standing here, I think letting go of the past doesn’t come in a single moment.  Maybe the past has to fade away slowly like letters in granite.  Worn away over time by wind, rain, and tears.”  (Page 1 ARC)

This is another fast-paced dystopian novel for young adults, but unlike the other books that raise ethical questions about what makes us human if we become bioengineered, this novel is more focused on Locke coming to terms with his losses and building a new life.  Pearson twists the coming-of-age novel, molding it into a novel that seems to have an older perspective in which the past becomes something deeply missed and longed for — not the usual perspective for a 17-year-old.  While Locke seems older than his years, he also has the same fault that most teens have — they believe they are invincible.

Fox Forever by Mary E. Pearson is a futuristic whirlwind of a novel, which is part spy thriller and part coming-of-age story.  Locke is a sympathetic character who gets in too deep, and when he’s forced to reveal the truth, readers will be biting their nails to see if he’s forgiven.  With dark and scary half-humans living in the former tunnels of the T in Boston, and an oppressive Secretary of Security on his heels, Locke is in for a journey that is both exhausting physically and emotionally, especially when his past comes roaring back to the present.

About the Author:

Mary E. Pearson is an American author of young-adult fiction. Her book A Room on Lorelei Street won the 2006 Golden Kite Award for fiction.

The Fox Inheritance by Mary E. Pearson

Source: Shelf Awareness
Paperback, 320 pages
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The Fox Inheritance by Mary E. Pearson is the sequel to The Adoration of Jenna Fox (my review), a book you should read before you read this review because it could contain spoilers.

It is 260 years into the future and Locke and Kara are awakened in new bodies, but with all of their memories from their 17 years as teens.  Their time in the black boxes was tortuous with only their memories of the good and bad to comfort them, but Locke and Kara managed to create a bond that surpasses human understanding — whether it is telepathy or just super-intuition.  Mostly told from Locke’s point of view, readers get a sense of his ease at the Gatsbro estate and the unease that Kara feels when asked to act as a trained monkey.  Gatsbro claims to be a savior, but because he is so cloying, readers will sense there is more to the story.  A final realization sets Kara and Locke out into a world they do not understand, and seeking the one person they know to be alive from their time as humans — Jenna Fox.

“I watched her change.  Right then.  Like veined marble was traveling up her legs, across her lap, up to her shoulders, stiffening her neck and finally covering her face, leaving a cracked version of who she once was.” (page 16 ARC)

Once again Pearson explores the ethical questions of biotechnology, but also the questions about what makes us human and how much of our flesh and minds is necessary for us to remain human.  And can we be human just by saving human flesh and the memories in our minds?  Or is there more — something less tangible that cannot be preserved beyond death?  Locke is a sympathetic character who struggles with trust and guilt, while Kara seems to be a shadow of her former self — one that struggles to remain who she was, but also adapt to the new world she finds herself in.  Pearson carefully demonstrates how Kara is the same and how she is different through expressions, looks, and other cues, and in the same way, she illustrates the differences Locke finds in himself and how he is still human.

The Fox Inheritance by Mary E. Pearson is a strong second book in a trilogy and while exciting and deeper than most young adult novels with its ethical questions, it lacked some of the mystery in the first book.  With that said, the novel does continue to raise questions about what it means to be human and at what point machines can become seemingly human — having dreams and goals outside of their programming.  Highly enjoyable if readers are looking for some down-to-earth science fiction, with high tech effects explained in layman’s terms.

About the Author:

Mary E. Pearson is an American author of young-adult fiction. Her book A Room on Lorelei Street won the 2006 Golden Kite Award for fiction.

Foreign Devils on the Silk Road by Peter Hopkirk

Source: Purchased at Novel Books
Paperback, 241 pages
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Foreign Devils on the Silk Road by Peter Hopkirk, which was my book club’s September selection, is the kind of nonfiction that could be engaging with a different kind of narrative.  The author seeks to cover the archaeological digs and finds of six men over the first quarter of the century — Sven Hedin of Sweden, Sir Aurel Stein of Britain, Albert von Le Coq of Germany, Paul Pelliot of France, and Langdon Warner of the United States, though there is a little bit about Count Otani of Japan.  There is little about Otani, and as such could have been omitted as the records are considered secret by the government.  There also is little about Pelliot and Warner, which really leaves the author with the three main archaeologists — whom the Chinese view as thieves given the art and manuscripts the men stole.  The harsh conditions of the Silk Road through the Taklamakan Desert left many expeditions decimated, animals dead, and others sickened.

“On one stretch they found the route marked by wooden posts placed there to prevent travelers from straying away from the caravan trail at night or during a sandstorm as so many unfortunates had done over the centuries.”  (page 76)

There is a complete chapter of China’s past going as far back as 221 bc and before the birth of Christ, and a second chapter that focuses on the elements of the map, going across every road and aspect of a map that could easily be looked at on its own.  These pages would have been better served with details of the expeditions of the individual men, which the author clearly obtains from personal accounts of the men.  Hopkirk does quote from some of these accounts throughout the book, but readers may soon find that reading the first accounts of these expeditions would be more detailed and engaging than the recounting of them by Hopkirk.

The narrative is dry for more than 60 pages, leaving readers wanting more from the author.  It seems odd that the book would be so light on details of how the archaeologists obtained the frescoes and manuscripts they found until more than halfway through the book.  Rather than make rubbings of the artifacts or careful drawings — cameras were more than likely cost prohibitive at this time, not to mention huge — these archaeologists used knives and saws to cut away the wall drawings in pieces.  These actions are very disheartening and seem to be motivated by personal glory or scholastic gain.  Foreign Devils on the Silk Road by Peter Hopkirk could have been so much more, but the narrative was lacking, and readers would be better served finding the accounts from the archaeologists and their peers — though one caution would be to watch out for political spin as a number of countries were competing for these treasures at the time.

**Unfortunately, with other obligations on the table, I missed the September discussion of this book.***

About the Author:

Peter Hopkirk is a British journalist and author who has written six books about the British Empire, Russia and Central Asia.

This is my 61st book for the 2013 New Authors Challenge.

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

Source: Public Library
Hardcover, 316 pages
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Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson is the first in a series of books set during the American Revolution, and Isabel is a young slave who must care for herself and her sister, Ruth, after the death of their mother and their owner.  She quickly finds that the things she had been promised by their owner do not come to pass, and she must prepare herself for new and more harsh owners, the Locktons.  In her new household in New York, where the Locktons have settled from England, she finds that her chores are many and grueling, but that her sister has garnered the special attention of Mrs. Lockton, who dresses her as a doll and requires her to be silent at all times.  New York also is where she meets Curzon, a young black boy working on the side of the rebels, for whom he hopes she will provide intelligence from the Lockton household.

“The bees swarmed again behind my eyes, making the scene grow dim and distant.  The sun was nearing the horizon, casting long shadows across the wharf.  I was a ghost tied to the ground, not a living soul.”  (page 182)

Isabel soon learns that both the British and American rebels are willing to use slaves as they see fit and promise them freedom they have no intention of granting.  Anderson’s young adult novel deftly balances the cruelty of slavery with the sensibilities of young adults, ensuring that the abuse and cruelty is never more than young readers can handle. However, there are some instances that do become graphic, but it is essential to demonstrate the fates that faced a number of slaves, especially those who attempted or even thought about escaping their masters.  Moreover, she easily demonstrates the excess and perfidy of the war and its opposing sides, as the British throw balls in honor of the queen at the same time the rebels are struggling to feed themselves.

“And then, the final triumph.  She used a tiny brush to paint a thin line of glue above each eye.  Madam opened an envelope and shook out two gray strips of mouse fur, each cut into an arch.  Leaning toward the mirror, she glued the mouse fur onto her own eyebrows, making them bushy and thick as the fashion required.”  (page 207)

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson is the first in a series, and it ends with a wide open ending in many ways, but at least some of the issues are resolved.  Anderson brings to life not only the issue of slavery, but also of the opposing sides in the revolution and the confusion it brought with it on the battlefield and in the cities not immediately touched by the war.  The confusing reports, the captured cities, the changing of power, all of it comes to life.

About the Author:

Laurie Halse Anderson is the New York Times-bestselling author who writes for kids of all ages. Known for tackling tough subjects with humor and sensitivity, her work has earned numerous American Library Association and state awards. Two of her books, Speak and Chains, were National Book Award finalists. Chains also made the Carnegie Medal Shortlist in the United Kingdom.

Laurie was the proud recipient of the 2009 Margaret A. Edwards Award given by YALSA division of the American Library Association for her “significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature…”. She was also honored with the ALAN Award from the National Council of Teachers of English and the St. Katharine Drexel Award from the Catholic Librarian Association.

This is my 4th book for the American Revolution Reading Challenge 2013

 

 

 

 

This is my 60th book for the 2013 New Authors Challenge.

Flow: The Life and Times of Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River by Beth Kephart

Source: Purchased
Hardcover, 120 pages
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Flow: The Life and Times of Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River by Beth Kephart is a well imagined autobiography of the Schuylkill River (Hidden Creek) near Philadelphia told from the point of view of the river.  A hopeful river intrigued by the humans that come upon her, collecting those forgotten items, and enjoying the natural wonders of frozen surfaces and fishing.  Coupled with the poetic narrative are notes on the time period and the major events near and around the river, including the Revolutionary War and the Civil War.  As the industrial revolution takes hold, the river finds that the humans who have been intrigued by her beauty and hidden secrets and those that have piqued her interest are busy moving through their lives with little thought to her, dumping their waste, chemicals, animal parts, and more into her flowing waters.

“Imagine taking a needle to the point of blood on your palm.  Imagine drawing that needle around and around, leaning in on it, forcing an edge, rearing at the creases and the lifelines, the ridges and slightest hills that forecast your happiness.  Imagine the skin giving way.

That’s skating.”  (Page 32)

There are moments of fear, curiosity, and hatred.  “How is it that I became the quickest route to your confession–the door you close to those parts of yourself that you hope no one will see?  Call me what you’ve made me, which is a grave.”  (page 87)  She’s a river (dare I call her Flo) who ages beyond her years thanks to the careless dumping and even direct interference as dams are built to harness power.  Kephart melds her prose with photography, poetry, and factual notations.  There’s a sense of nostalgia in Flow that breathes life into history, ensuring readers sense the culture of the time period, the struggles of the people, and their dreams.  The river just wants to live, but she remains curious about her own environment, curious about how the people use and abuse her, and disheartened when it seems as though she has been forgotten or replaced.

Flow: The Life and Times of Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River by Beth Kephart is a historical look at the river and Philadelphia, handled with a careful and creative hand.  The river comes alive, just like Philadelphia’s people and her history.  Readers will learn a great deal about the river, the industrial revolution, and our nation’s history.  The Schuylkill River is no longer the hidden gem of Pennsylvania.

About the Author:

Beth Kephart is the author of 10 books, including the National Book Award finalist A Slant of Sun; the Book Sense pick Ghosts in the Garden; the autobiography of Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River, Flow; the acclaimed business fable Zenobia; and the critically acclaimed novels for young adults, Undercover and House of Dance. A third YA novel, Nothing but Ghosts, is due out in June 2009. And a fourth young adult novel, The Heart Is Not a Size, will be released in March 2010. “The Longest Distance,” a short story, appears in the May 2009 HarperTeen anthology, No Such Thing as the Real World.

Kephart is a winner of the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts fiction grant, a National Endowment for the Arts grant, a Leeway grant, a Pew Fellowships in the Arts grant, and the Speakeasy Poetry Prize, among other honors. Kephart’s essays are frequently anthologized, she has judged numerous competitions, and she has taught workshops at many institutions, to all ages. Kephart teaches the advanced nonfiction workshop at the University of Pennsylvania. You can visit her blog.  Here’s my most recent interview with her too.

My other Beth Kephart reviews:

Black Aperture by Matt Rasmussen

Source: Academy of American Poets, part of the membership benefits, with no expectation of review
Paperback, 64 pages
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Black Aperture by Matt Rasmussen, 2012 winner of the Walt Whitman Award from the Academy of American Poets and recently added to the National Book Award 2013 long list, could not be more aptly named.  The light passing through this dark hole is that of the narrator’s brother when he commits suicide, forever changing his family and yet changing nothing in the wider world.  There is a balance Rasmussen tries to strike here between the irrevocable change the family, and in particular the brother, feel and the lack of change outside of their microcosm, even in nature where the hunters and sportsman arbitrarily continue to shoot clay pigeons or deer.

From After Suicide (page 4-5)

I wanted to put my finger
into the hole

feel the smooth channel
he escaped through

stop the milk
so he could swallow it

There is a deep sadness in these poems, but also a sense of confusion and desire to understand, even when understanding is beyond our capacity because we are not those who have taken their lives.  We have different experiences and different perspectives, and while we have the capacity for empathy, that is oftentimes not the same — or enough.  The narrator of the poems even acknowledges this when he says in “Elegy in X Parts,” “There is no refuge//from yourself.” (page 36)  It is because we are trapped with ourselves that suicide may seem like the only solution, especially if we are unable to see solutions outside of ourselves.

Rasmussen has some stark images, haunting pictures of death and lifelessness.  There is an emptiness in those vivid moments, which the poet captures with so few brushstrokes.  As the past slips further away, people and moments fade, but their impressions are still felt — as personified by “Monet as a Verb” (page 19).  And although a tragic loss can be scarring, scars fade and heal.  Black Aperture by Matt Rasmussen examines the light that leaves our lives in a flash, often unexpectedly and without reason, and how we sometimes grieve for long periods of time afterward and in some cases, even want to follow our loved ones through the same dark hole to find peace, understanding and closure.

About the Poet:

Matt Rasmussen’s poetry has been published in Gulf Coast, Cimarron Review, H_NGM_N, Water~Stone Review, New York Quarterly, Paper Darts, and at Poets.org. He’s received awards, grants, and residencies from The Bush Foundation, The McKnight Foundation, The Minnesota State Arts Board, Jerome Foundation, Intermedia Arts, The Anderson Center in Red Wing, MN, and The Corporation of Yaddo. He is a 2014 Pushcart Prize winner, a former Peace Corps Volunteer, and teaches at Gustavus Adolphus College. His first book of poems, Black Aperture, won the 2012 Walt Whitman Award and was published in 2013 by LSU Press.

This is my 25th book for the Dive Into Poetry Challenge 2013.

 

 

This is my 59th book for the 2013 New Authors Challenge.

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Source: Purchased at Public Library Book Sale
Paperback, 110 pages
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The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros is a coming-of-age story about Esperanza Cordero in a Latino neighborhood on Mango Street in Chicago.  She doesn’t remember much of the time before Mango Street, and it is clear that things were both good and bad there.  Neighbors she knew were hit by their husbands, while others had given up on their dreams simply because they got married.  In many ways these stories are woven together and are lyrical enough that they could be an epic poem about growing up as an immigrant in America.

Each short vignette tells a story from Esperanza’s point of view, revealing the harsh realities of growing up in an area other people are afraid to step foot in.

“All brown all around, we are safe.  But watch us drive into a neighborhood of another color and our knees go shakity-shake and our car windows get rolled up tight and our eyes look straight.”  (page 28)

Esperanza is growing up and learning how to become a woman, running in the city streets in heels an old lady hands her and her friends.  At the same time, she’s struggling to hold onto her childhood, while she’s admiring the older girls in the neighborhood wearing make-up and nylons.  She’s naive about relationships between girls and boys and she finds herself in situations where she can be taken advantage of, thanks to those she trusts.  But she also comforts her father when he cries.

“They don’t walk like ordinary dogs, but leap and somersault like an apostrophe and comma.” (page 71)

Cisneros paints a bleak picture as seen through Esperanza’s eyes, but at the same time she allows her character to feel something beyond the confines of her neighborhood.  She does not want to be that woman who merely looks at the possibilities and wallows in sadness and regret.  The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros pays homage to these struggling women in a cadence, and she ensures readers not only glimpse a life that may be unfamiliar but that still contains a sliver of hope.

About the Author:

Sandra Cisneros was born in Chicago in 1954. Internationally acclaimed for her poetry and fiction, she has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the Lannan Literary Award and the American Book Award, and of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the MacArthur Foundation. Cisneros is the author of two novels The House on Mango Street and Caramelo; a collection of short stories, Woman Hollering Creek; two books of poetry, My Wicked Ways and Loose Woman; and a children’s book, Hairs/Pelitos. She is the founder of the Macondo Foundation, an association of writers united to serve underserved communities (www.macondofoundation.org), and is Writer in Residence at Our Lady of the Lake University, San Antonio.

This is my 58th book for the 2013 New Authors Challenge.

Market Street by Anita Hughes

Source: St. Martin’s Press
Paperback, 304 pages
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Market Street by Anita Hughes allows readers to take a peek behind the golden curtain of San Francisco’s social elite.  It’s a highly capitalistic society in which shopping among the women is a sport and those who fail to get the best clothes before everyone else are usually the losers.  Behind this facade, Cassie Blake, heiress to a shopping guru’s dream — the Fenton’s fortune — lives in Berkeley with her ethics professor husband, Aidan Blake, and shuns high society for her vegetable garden and wifely duties.  Her husband is by turns loving and controlling, and repeatedly tells her that even though Fenton’s is the family business, she doesn’t have to take it over.  His behavior toward her and her work (even just volunteer work) outside the home should send up red flags, but Cassie is blissfully unaware until she steps into a customer service role one day at her mother’s store.

Cassie has been taking care of others since she met Aidan, and as his wife, she falls easily into that role until she finds out about his infidelity.  Pushed to reassess her marriage, and by extension her life, she moves out and moves into her best friend’s mansion, while Alexis’s husband is off jet-setting as a hedge fund man.  While Cassie is endearing because of her down-to-earth nature and the duty she has to fulfill her mother’s dreams and take over Fenton’s, some of the other characters are harshly materialistic, very obsessed with image, and focused too much on sex.  If public displays of affection make you uneasy, there are some moments where Aidan makes advances toward Cassie at the most inappropriate times.  These moments may be for effect to demonstrate his hound-dog nature, but readers may wonder what Cassie was thinking staying married to the man so long.

“‘Alexis, you don’t need a discount.’ Cassie giggled.  ‘You’re married to a gazillionaire.’

‘But if I get a discount, I have to buy them.  It would be fiscally imprudent not to.'” (page 127)

“‘She’s going to give Derek a new title and make you store manager.’ Cassie buttered a baguette. ‘If you want the job.’

‘Of course I want the job!’ Alexis opened the freezer and took out a carton of ice cream.  ‘I haven’t had this much fun since Barbie summer camp.'”  (page 155)

Where Hughes really shines in characterization is her juxtaposition of Cassie and her best friend, Alexis.  One is materialistic and loves the high life, while the other would rather have dirt under her fingernails.  But when a crisis — even just insecurities — arises, both women support one another and know just how frank to be.  Even though their outlooks are different, they’re ready with the support and ice cream when necessary.  Market Street by Anita Hughes is a mixed bag of great friendship camaraderie, sex scenes, and some cardboard cutout characters, but the pages fly by, making it a fun trip to San Francisco.

About the Author:  (photo by Sheri Geoffreys)

Anita Hughes was born in Sydney, Australia and had a charmed childhood that included petting koala bears, riding the waves on Bondi Beach, and putting an occasional shrimp on the barbie. Her writing career began at the age of eight, when she won a national writing contest in THE AUSTRALIAN newspaper, and was named “One of Australia’s Next Best Writers.” (She still has the newspaper clipping.)

She received a B.A. in English Literature with a minor in Creative Writing from Bard College, and attended UC Berkeley’s Masters in Creative Writing program.

Check out my reviews of Monarch Beach and Lake Como!