Daring poetry that isn’t afraid to think big.
A debut volume of philosophical poetry wrestles with age-old questions—Who am I? What is real? What does it all mean?
The author of this book is somewhat of a paradox himself. On the final pages of his verse volume, Incognito writes that “i am simply sharing my thoughts that i enjoy, / for you to as well.” But this comes hot on the heels of a much more ambitious claim—“i do not want to create a new religion for you. / the point is to destroy your religions.” It’s rare to see such humility and such grandiosity couched so closely together, but perhaps that’s part of the point: The author—who goes by a pseudonym—isn’t here to comfort readers. Rather, he is here to strip away their illusions. Iris Murdoch once said that we live in “a world of illusion. The great task in life is to find reality.” Incognito is ready and willing to help with that task. Sometimes he does so in what amount to free verse poems. For example, “God’s Trip” opens with, “you never know you’re dreaming until you wake up. / maybe you’re locked in dreams of dreams / and reality is what you want it to be. / it’s only when you wake up that you realize / you wasted a dream by thinking it was real.” The repetition here is artful, and one of the tenets of the poet’s faith is that dreams give way to dreams that ultimately give way to reality. Elsewhere, Incognito dispenses with longer forms in favor of koanlike epigrams. Here is one: “i found myself asking more questions without any answers / but the things we can’t explain eventually bring clarity.” That such obscurity might indeed eventually yield “clarity” is one of the author’s main hopes. Whether it ever does in this bold and provocative volume is likely up to readers. Incognito piles mystery upon mystery here, and some may be exasperated by the sheer number of unanswered questions. But perhaps answers are forthcoming because, as the poet notes on the book’s last page, Volume 2 will be out soon.
Daring poetry that isn’t afraid to think big.Pub Date: April 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-79297-781-7
Page Count: 234
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Therapeutic, moving verse from a promising new talent.
Keridan’s poetry testifies to the pain of love and loss—and to the possibility of healing in the aftermath.
The literary critic Geoffrey Hartman once wrote that literature—and poetry, in particular—can help us “read the wound” of trauma. That is, it can allow one to express and explain one’s deepest hurts when everyday language fails. Keridan appears to have a similar understanding of poetry. She writes in “Foreword,” the opening work of her debut collection, that “pain frequently uses words as an escape route / (oh, how I know).” Many words—and a great deal of pain—escape in this volume, but the result is healing: “the ending is happy / the beginning was horrific / so let’s start there.” The book, then, tracks the process of recovery in the wake of suffering, and often, this suffering is brought on by romantic relationships gone wrong. An early untitled poem opens, “I die a little / taking pieces of me to feed the fire / that keeps him warm / you don’t notice that it’s a slow death / when you’re disappearing little by little.” The author’s imagery here—of the self fueling the dying fire of love—is simultaneously subtle and wrenching. But the poem’s message, amplified elsewhere in the book, is clear: We go wrong if we destructively give ourselves over to others, and healing comes only when we turn our energies back to our own good. Later poems, therefore, reveal that self-definition often equals strength. The process is painful but salutary; when “you’re left unprotected / surrounded by chaos with nothing you / can depend on / except yourself / and that’s when you gather the pieces / of the life you lost / and use them to build the life you want.” The “life you want” is an elusive goal, and the author knows that the path to self-definition is fraught with peril—but her collection may give strength to those who walk it.
Therapeutic, moving verse from a promising new talent.Pub Date: Nov. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-72770-538-6
Page Count: 196
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Jan. 9, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Downbeat but often engaging poems and stories.
A slim volume of largely gay-themed writings with pessimistic overtones.
Poe (Simple Simon, 2013, etc.) divides this collection of six short stories and 34 poems into five sections: “Art,” “Death,” “Relationship,” “Being,” and “Reflection.” Significantly, a figurative death at the age of 7 appears in two different poems, in which the author uses the phrase “a pretended life” to refer to the idea of hiding one’s true nature and performing socially enforced gender roles. This is a well-worn trope, but it will be powerful and resonant for many who have struggled with a stigmatized identity. In a similar vein, “Imaginary Tom” presents the remnants of a faded relationship: “Now we are imaginary friends, different in each other’s thoughts, / I the burden you seek to discard, / you the lover I created from the mist of longing.” Once in a while, short story passages practically leap off of the page, such as this evocative description of a seedy establishment in Lincoln, Nebraska: “It was a dimly lit bar that smelled of rodent piss, with barstools that danced on uneven legs and made the patrons wonder if they were drunker than they thought.” In “Valéry’s Ride,” Poe examines the familial duties that often fall to unmarried and childless people, keeping them from forming meaningful bonds with others. In this story, after the double whammy of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hits Louisiana, Valéry’s extended family needs him more than ever; readers will likely root for the gay protagonist as he makes the difficult decision to strike out on his own. Not all of Poe’s main characters are gay; the heterosexual title character in “Mrs. Calumet’s Workspace,” for instance, pursues employment in order to escape the confines of her home and a passionless marriage. Working as a bookkeeper, she attempts to carve out a space for herself, symbolized by changes in her work area. Still, this story echoes the recurring theme of lives unlived due to forces often beyond one’s control.
Downbeat but often engaging poems and stories.Pub Date: Nov. 16, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-5168-3693-2
Page Count: 120
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: March 5, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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