Thursday, May 31, 2007
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
books read . . .
. . . while in Europe: The Road by Cormac McCarthy, which was pretty fantastic; The Final Solution by Michael Chabon, which I read straight through and need to reread, because it is so short that it works more like an extended short story and I feel like I missed some nuances of the story. Also Book of My Nights by Li-Young Lee: pretty damn awesome stuff.
Listening to Bob Dylan, Modern Times, which I am digging. He really is lyrically gifted, undeniably so. What would the world have been like if Bob were a poet? Is he already? Hmmm. Everything is ultimately connected somehow. I am thinking of that rhino again.
Listening to Bob Dylan, Modern Times, which I am digging. He really is lyrically gifted, undeniably so. What would the world have been like if Bob were a poet? Is he already? Hmmm. Everything is ultimately connected somehow. I am thinking of that rhino again.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
so...
...I am back, Stateside. Spent most of yesterday sleeping, trying to ward off the jet lag and to make up for lack of sleep while abroad. So much amazing and awesome stuff happened on the trip, the best of which simply has to be the sheer amount of material I now have for my writing. Ten poems written while there; many new titles or ideas of poems to write in future; possible plot details for the novel, although that is still sketchy.
I must also allow that most of the material I gathered had more to do with moments of insight or basic embarrassment or whatnot...and the other half of that coin I mostly owe to the dead bodies of animals, which there were aplenty. There is something about seeing a stuffed rhino at eye level, with a thin sheet of glass between you that puts things into perspective. I don't think I have ever felt so diminutive.
I must also allow that most of the material I gathered had more to do with moments of insight or basic embarrassment or whatnot...and the other half of that coin I mostly owe to the dead bodies of animals, which there were aplenty. There is something about seeing a stuffed rhino at eye level, with a thin sheet of glass between you that puts things into perspective. I don't think I have ever felt so diminutive.
Sunday, May 06, 2007
a small gem . . .
. . . before I leave. Mark Doty is my hero. And I am in love with his absolutely amazing poem "A Display of Mackerel."
on the eve
So, Sarkozy won (which I knew he would), and Paris Hilton is going to jail. There is no end to the newsworthy.
I had to be ruthless in paring down the books I could take with me. I won't mention who didn't make the cut because then I will change my mind and try to figure it out all over again. But enough is enough. The bag is packed, the notebook and pencil are primed.
I've been entrusted with leading a workshop in Switzerland for some high school students, and in doing so have been revisiting some poems I haven't looked at in a while. Akhmatova in particular. Early on in my undergraduate poetry workshop career (four years in the same workshop counts as a career I think), we looked at her poems, and went into a lot of the detailing, the subtlety that made them work. I feel like the poetry I have been reading lately is a lot more layered, but a lot less intense. The moments that Akhmatova captures are the crux of her poems. There is also some emotional layering, political undercurrents, social constructs, etc., but the truly amazing thing about her poetry is how simple it is. Not in a deceptively simple way either, like, say, William Carlos Williams, who I have also been revisiting.
What I love about this is how differently I feel each time I re-read a book of poetry, especially if it has been a while. There is a rekindling of feeling. A newer and more observant bond. With fiction I don't tend to get this reaction. Books I have reread over and over again inevitably illicit the same emotional/intellectual response they did the first time, which is why I reread certain books over and over. I have read Little Women over a hundred times, and that is a conservative estimate. At least once a year now, sometimes more, and as a child/teenager I would reread it incessantly. I have grown up with this book, read it at all different stages of my life. I change, but the book doesn't. I do start to notice things about the book though, places that are not as strong as others, and there are chapters I prefer, and I still get mad when Amy burns up Jo's book, but these are things I enjoy so much that each time the book is always satisfying.
I had a point here, I think. Ah, yes. Poetry. A bird of a different feather. I could never choose between them. They do different things. Obviously. I do think though, that if Harry Potter had been around when I was a kid, I may have passed over Little Women. I can't be certain of course. But it is possible. I have read all six books a fair few times and there are so many holes and unexplained things in the stories, that if they were not so engaging and such a great tale of good vs evil, I would be mad. J.K. should have sent them to me for proofreading. I'd have happily pointed out her problems. I may do that in a later post anyway. But I still love the books, love the movies.
And this time tomorrow I will be boarding a plane. I love to travel, and I miss the days when the terminals were open to people picking up and dropping off. The bustle. People watching. Insanely overpriced bottles of water and chocolate bars. Luggage. Waiting. All of that is the good part. Being stuck on the plane is not as much fun. But still. Travel is good. I am not sure if I will be able to post much (if at all), but I will definitely once I return State-side. And we do have a saying about these trips: what happens in Munich, stays in Munich. Thank god!
I had to be ruthless in paring down the books I could take with me. I won't mention who didn't make the cut because then I will change my mind and try to figure it out all over again. But enough is enough. The bag is packed, the notebook and pencil are primed.
I've been entrusted with leading a workshop in Switzerland for some high school students, and in doing so have been revisiting some poems I haven't looked at in a while. Akhmatova in particular. Early on in my undergraduate poetry workshop career (four years in the same workshop counts as a career I think), we looked at her poems, and went into a lot of the detailing, the subtlety that made them work. I feel like the poetry I have been reading lately is a lot more layered, but a lot less intense. The moments that Akhmatova captures are the crux of her poems. There is also some emotional layering, political undercurrents, social constructs, etc., but the truly amazing thing about her poetry is how simple it is. Not in a deceptively simple way either, like, say, William Carlos Williams, who I have also been revisiting.
What I love about this is how differently I feel each time I re-read a book of poetry, especially if it has been a while. There is a rekindling of feeling. A newer and more observant bond. With fiction I don't tend to get this reaction. Books I have reread over and over again inevitably illicit the same emotional/intellectual response they did the first time, which is why I reread certain books over and over. I have read Little Women over a hundred times, and that is a conservative estimate. At least once a year now, sometimes more, and as a child/teenager I would reread it incessantly. I have grown up with this book, read it at all different stages of my life. I change, but the book doesn't. I do start to notice things about the book though, places that are not as strong as others, and there are chapters I prefer, and I still get mad when Amy burns up Jo's book, but these are things I enjoy so much that each time the book is always satisfying.
I had a point here, I think. Ah, yes. Poetry. A bird of a different feather. I could never choose between them. They do different things. Obviously. I do think though, that if Harry Potter had been around when I was a kid, I may have passed over Little Women. I can't be certain of course. But it is possible. I have read all six books a fair few times and there are so many holes and unexplained things in the stories, that if they were not so engaging and such a great tale of good vs evil, I would be mad. J.K. should have sent them to me for proofreading. I'd have happily pointed out her problems. I may do that in a later post anyway. But I still love the books, love the movies.
And this time tomorrow I will be boarding a plane. I love to travel, and I miss the days when the terminals were open to people picking up and dropping off. The bustle. People watching. Insanely overpriced bottles of water and chocolate bars. Luggage. Waiting. All of that is the good part. Being stuck on the plane is not as much fun. But still. Travel is good. I am not sure if I will be able to post much (if at all), but I will definitely once I return State-side. And we do have a saying about these trips: what happens in Munich, stays in Munich. Thank god!
Friday, May 04, 2007
quick post
In Chattanooga, doing all the last minute things travel requires. I cannot wait to get on the plane, to land in Munich. From there we travel to Switzerland, then Italy, then Slovenia and finally back to Munich. It will be insanely awesome.
Just saw this thing on PBS about the French elections. I find it amusing that Sarkozy has a reputation for being rather anti-US, or perhaps, anti-current-administration, and yet the policies he wants to implement are so American. So capitalistic. Truly Mssr. Sarkozy, don't lose the things that make you French. A 35 hour work week is infinitely better than overtime pay.
Just saw this thing on PBS about the French elections. I find it amusing that Sarkozy has a reputation for being rather anti-US, or perhaps, anti-current-administration, and yet the policies he wants to implement are so American. So capitalistic. Truly Mssr. Sarkozy, don't lose the things that make you French. A 35 hour work week is infinitely better than overtime pay.
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
packing woes
What books should I take to Europe? Now that summer is here, and I have time to READ, I want to sit down and read everything. I went to the bookstore today and had to peel myself away. I did get Cormac McCarthy's The Road. I can't wait to read it. I have heard incredibly good things about it. Definitely taking that, and possibly these:
Ted Kooser's Poetry Home Repair Manual
Li-Young Lee's Book of My Nights
Heather McHugh's Shades
Flannery O'Connor's Wise Blood, Everything That Rises Must Converge, The Violent Bear It Away
Robin Behn's (ed.) The Practice of Poetry
Sylvia Plath's restored edition Ariel
Michael Chabon's The Final Solution
the latest edition of Poets&Writers
And um, well, anything else I can stick in my bag last minute. Too much? I also want to take Edward P. Jones' The Unknown World. Sigh. So many books, so little space in my suitcase. Some books I just had to leave out because they are too big. Salmon Rushdie's Satanic Verses will have to wait. So will Robert Anthony Siegel's All Will Be Revealed.
There is just no way to fit all those books, is there? Woe.
Ted Kooser's Poetry Home Repair Manual
Li-Young Lee's Book of My Nights
Heather McHugh's Shades
Flannery O'Connor's Wise Blood, Everything That Rises Must Converge, The Violent Bear It Away
Robin Behn's (ed.) The Practice of Poetry
Sylvia Plath's restored edition Ariel
Michael Chabon's The Final Solution
the latest edition of Poets&Writers
And um, well, anything else I can stick in my bag last minute. Too much? I also want to take Edward P. Jones' The Unknown World. Sigh. So many books, so little space in my suitcase. Some books I just had to leave out because they are too big. Salmon Rushdie's Satanic Verses will have to wait. So will Robert Anthony Siegel's All Will Be Revealed.
There is just no way to fit all those books, is there? Woe.
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