Poetry

[Azrael]

I'm wondering if there are any lovers of poetry here.  I've been getting into it more and more (but it's something that tends to be a bit harder for me to digest).  Just looking for some recs outside of the well known authors.  Been working on a short story where poetry is pretty central and I thought I should read some more.  Most recent authors I've read (and liked) are:

Robert Creeley - a friend got me a big collection of his, 1975-2005, and I really like it.)
Pier Paolo Passolini - that same friend worked on a translation project of Passolini that included essays, and poetry so I picked up that book
Kamau Brathwaite - Read his book Ancestors.  Really fantastic stuff.
Allen Ginsberg - I've got the Howl, City Lights book.
Gloria Anzaldua - Her book Borderlands/La Frontera.

Probably want to focus more on recent American poetry.  I know of people like Corso, and Snyder, but I guess I'm asking for any specific collections/books that people would recommend for a poetry neophyte.  Thanks.

[CastNuri]

I do enjoy reading poetry but I'm rather out of touch with contemporary authors. Seamus Heaney is supposed to be quite good, I suppose you can try reading some of his stuff. He has written quite a lot though so you may want to read a few from different chronological collections to see if you like his work.

There's usually a copy of Palgrave's "Golden Treasury" on my bedside table. It's an excellent collection of classic poetry. I also recently picked up a collection of "childhood" poetry-- not nursery rhymes but a solid compilation of poems touching on childhood as a theme. Includes both classic as well as contemporary poets. I like to buy compilations based on themes because I'm usually using them as research for something (which is why I'm terrible with the names of the poets).

Sorry if I don't have anything else to add, I'm still a novice when it comes to these things. :P

[Banestar]

Predatory by Glenn Shaheen. Forthcoming from U of Pittsburgh Press this fall. Look up some of his work online - a lot of it is really accessible to a "poetry neophyte" like yourself.

Other good, under-the-radar authors are Phillip Ischy and Martin Rock.

The three of these guys have a bunch of publications under their belts - and are all really talented.

My favorite of the "big" poets is probably Charles Simic. His simplicity is really endearing. But I also like Ginsberg, Berryman, and loads of others.

[Vanguard]

Holy shit...how did I miss this?

I'm reading Simic's The Master of Disguises right now and I hate it. I'm not sure what I expected from it, but despite how vivid his images are, I find little to separate him from the likes of Robert Frost, Billy Collins, or Maxine Kumin.

[Demon_Princess_Kay]

Been forever since I read poetry, but I've been writing a lot lately Here's some links to ones i have posted if anyone cares to read them.
http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=9070771
http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=9070643
http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=9063862
http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=9063857
http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=9062806
http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=9062722
http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=9045445

[Azrael]

Oh man...totally forgot about this topic.

Uh...honestly, I didn't think any of those poems were all that good. Didn't feel like there was anything truly poetic about them. Just a lot of very cliched lines strung together, and many times you repeat lines over and over again, but not in a way that I would say is good. I would say just keep working at it, and read some more poetry and work with other poets if you want to get better.

Still chugging away at Creeley. I freaking LOVE this man. I don't know what else to say except that he needs to be read.

Also read some Bolano. I've heard his poetry is very mediocre, but I really have liked the few I did read. But, then again, I'm not very good with poetry so I can't always recognize what makes good/bad poetry. His prose is vastly superior though.

Now I must get back to writing this short story that is taking me weeks to write about a broken poet (I've been reading way too much Bolano).

[Banestar]

Holy shit...how did I miss this?

I'm reading Simic's The Master of Disguises right now and I hate it. I'm not sure what I expected from it, but despite how vivid his images are, I find little to separate him from the likes of Robert Frost, Billy Collins, or Maxine Kumin.

If you're feeling open-minded, try something from the '90s, it's much better than the most recent Simic. I recommend The World Doesn't End (hey, I like prose poems), or Jackstraws (my personal favorite collection of his). And relating him to Billy Collins? Ouch. Not cool. I don't care for Collins at all. Too simple and mass-market for my tastes.

[Vanguard]

I actually went to the library intending to pick up The World Doesn't End, as I too love the prose poem (Reverdy, Baudelaire, and Rimbaud). For some reason, I left with that other book. I am still willing to take a peak, but given how singular of a work it seems, I'm not sure where I would go after that.

Azrael: Bolano's poetry isn't bad, it just doesn't hit like his prose does. It also feels a little too much in the post-beat vein of writing. I'm pissed cause the NYPL said they had like 15 copies of The Savage Detectives and after finally getting my hands on a copy and getting like 100 pages into it, I had to return it cause someone placed a hold on it,.

[dyeager]

I go back to Praise by Robert Hass pretty much every couple of months. The Waste Land by TS Eliot remains my favorite poem ever.

I also just recently read a terrific volume of poetry called Pigafetta is My Wife by Joe Hall. I encourage everyone to check it out. http://www.blackocean.org/pigafetta-is-my-wife/

Lastly, now that I'm several years removed from college, I really get a kick out of the notion of poetry being too main stream. :-)

[Azrael]

I think I'll have to look into more of his poetry. I am tempted to buy a book of his poetry, but every time I am about to I opt for a novel instead. His prose is pretty terrific.

Also, Vanguard, I feel like you are enough of a book lover that I would trust you enough to loan my copy of The Savage Detectives. I know you're in NYC and I'm in the 'burbs so I don't mind just dropping it in the mail and you can have it for however long it takes (It seriously reads fast, I finished it in about 1.5 weeks). I'm a huge Bolano fanatic and own 6 of his books and would gladly lend his book to anyone interested in him. If you're interested (and can't get a copy from the Library) just PM me your address.

---
I want to get off
the fucking world and
sit down in a chair,
and be there.

God dammit I really love Robert Creeley.

If poetry is mainstream, then what's underground? I guess that'd probably go to the short story maybe?

That Pigafetta book sounds really awesome.

[Vanguard]

Sure, if you're interested, I could send you a copy of one of those books of poems I have. While the majority of what I own are hardcover collected editions, I do have Lunch Poems or Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror if you wanted to take a look.

[SonicDeathMonkey]

My bro is really good, been published, here are a couple short ones

Truth

 

 

truth is hidden within

evidence in nature

ev’rything becomes true

 

falsehood comes of imagination

faith from fate





The Road

 

 

not all roads travel straight
every road ends twice
walk with a travel mate

compass, water, some food,
cigarettes