Compulsive Reader Newsletter January

 

The January Compulsive Reader Newsletter has now gone out and is on its way to inboxes everywhere.  This month's issue includes 14 new reviews including One River by Steve Armstrong, the new translation of The Iliad by Emily Wilson, Thieves by Valerie Werder, and The Girl Who Cried Diamonds & Other Stories by Rebecca Hirsch Garcia.  We also have a new giveaway for a copy of The China Shelf by Jennifer Maiden, the usual literary news roundup and an exclusive interview with Valerie Werder at the podcast here: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/compulsivereader/episodes/Valerie-Werder-on-Thieves-e2cqfr0

If you can't wait or somehow aren't getting it you can grab a copy in the archive here.

To sign up visit http://www.compulsivereader.com

Compulsive Reader Newsletter Dec

The December Compulsive Reader Newsletter has just gone out.  As always the issue is chock-full of new book reviews and interviews including The Lady in The Bottle by Rozanna Lilley, Aboard the Time Line by Bastian Gregory, The Unreal City by Mike Lala, See What I Mean by Charles Rammelkamp, A Brilliant Life by Rachelle Unreich, and lots more as well as 2 new book giveaways, interviews and much more.  To read it online visit: Compulsive Reader Newsletter archive.  To sign up visit: http://www.compulsivereader.com

Happy reading!  

New York Surrealism: On Alice Notley's How to Really Get an Apartment

Here is my third ModPo essay this year. Unfortunately I cannot find the source poem online to link to and I don't want to reproduce here in case of copyright issues so I'll just say that the source poem is from the book At Night the States, published 1987 by Yellow Press, Chicago and is well worth checking out if you can. The book is available on Scribd https://www.scribd.com/document/652772575/alice-notley-at-night-the-states-1 so if you have a subscription as I do, you can view it on page 49 at the link above.  And just for fun, you can read the much longer title poem of the book here if you're wanting more Alice or can't get to the book on Scribd: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/50834/at-night-the-states

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Alice Notley’s “How to Really Get an Apartment” is, in many ways a classic New York School poem. It has all the hallmarks. The setting of course which is probably the most defining feature given the name - the apartment with its buzzer, the landlord, even the sense of the importance of having secured a rental property - its preciousness in the city.  There are the cultural references - the name dropping of Jack Kerouac and the republican salt - one assumes that the line in quotation marks is a slogan in use at the time, and the sequencing from passing by an apartment to securing it - all happening in the present tense and progressing in a seemingly orderly way from one step to the next with multiple uses of the ampersand to indicate the next step forward in a way designed to be intentionally conversational and visual.  There is also the abbreviation of apartment to apt and the four em dashes that create a visual sense of motion in the work. 

The conversational quality here is one that mirrors the breathlessness and easy quality of a discussion you might have with someone over a drink - the intimacy that begins with starting the work with ellipses and a reference “the same building”, as if we had already been talking about the building, and takes on the cadence of a narrative that melds present tense with reminiscence and digression, as if this were an anecdote told to the reader as addressee. This is partly indicated by the title which is a kind of recipe or even a hook - read this and you’ll find out something you need to know, which is humorous because it’s not a standard logic and shaking salt at a landlord and calling it wine will not get you a coveted apartment in New York City.  Besides, it negates itself at the end in the classic New York School way of calling into question the overall tenet of the poem.  

The surrealism here is one that Notley is famous for - her use of dream sequencing.  In this instance that dream logic is in play where each image gives rise to the next one - and the relationship does not have to be the kind we are used to in daily life or “plain time”.  Instead we have building to Kerouac to buzzer to salt to wine to access.  It’s a progression that works perfectly from a grammatical and linear point of view but has a subverted semantics where salt and wine can be synonymous, and where the desire to really obtain an apartment is a desire for what is already there.  The symbolism here is one that has a sonic quality - using free association of sound, including subtle alliteration and repetitions such as “girl” with the repetitions of “get”, the multiple instances of salt, the alliteration of “w” as the poem progresses through the latter part of the poem - “whenever”, “walks”, “Would”, “wine” and the multiple variations on “you” and “your”.  All of these sounds combine to create a gentle motion forward that mimic the progression of walking, forming a small but perfectly formed New York poem. 

Compulsive reader Newsletter November

Happy November!  The latest Compulsive Reader newsletter has now gone out.  If you missed it you can grab a copy in the Compulsive Reader archive.  This month's issue features fantastic new reviews of authors like Jared Harel, Robbie Couch, Shoshanna Rockman, LJ Sysko and many more plus interviews with incredible multi-talented creatives like Kathleen Rooney, Samuel Lucas Allen, and Eugen Bacon.  If you're a subscriber it will come right to your inbox.  If you'd like to subscribe for free, visit: http://www.compulsivereader.com and just pop your email address in the upper right hand corner.  

"Books" by shutterhacks is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Darkinfested: sensate and visceral (on "Subliminal" by Lorine Niedecker)

This is my second ModPo 2023 essay on Lorine Niedecker's "Subliminal". I've been on quite the Niedecker kick lately and coming across this sequence, which I hadn't read before, has increased the kick.  The bit below is all I wrote the message on but I recommend the full sequence which cannot be found online (I won't paste from my book which I don't think is legal), but the book with the full sequence is Harpsichord & Salt Fish which I now have but which you could very likely get from your local library if you want to read it in full (highly recommended).  The essay specifically asked us to explore how this poem engages with the principles of Imagism. 

“Subliminal” by Lorine Niedecker is a five-poem sequence, but for the purpose of this essay I will only be close-reading the first section.  In classic Niedecker style, the poem is condensed and spare, its meaning arising as much from the structure and spaces in the work as from the semantics.  The short lines of each of the four couplets begin with two or three words indented as the first part of the couplet, describing what is mostly sensate and visceral - embodied in alliterative and sometimes sibilant sounds that evoke an immediate response in the reader. The second lines of the poem are more descriptive and slightly longer - an attempt perhaps at qualifying the sensation of the first line. For example, a reader might approach the first couplet with the question “what is Sleep’s dream” and the answer ‘a nerve-flash in the blood”.  The poems structure with those even indents create a visual impression of a double helix twist - perhaps hinting that there is something inherited here - that tall, torment of the mother, the repeated use of the word “nerve”.  

There are many elements of this extract that align with imagism.  All of the sonic and structural elements of the poem described above do seem to suggest something other than a "direct treatment of “thing,” one of Imagism’s key tenants, however it is also fair to say that the poem may well be the direct treatment of a dream, rendering the elements of the dream (rather than the mother, or the sensations themselves) in a direct way.  It is also possible to define the object as the mother, the most concrete image in the poem, rendered with a crispness as ‘tall, tormented’ both fairly straightforward words and an absence of metaphors, as is often the case with Niedecker.  I do think that would be a simplistic reading of the poem though, as there is much that could be taken as symbolic. While the poem feels internally complete and not referential and the words are, in the main, not decorative, there is that final word, ‘darkinfested’ - which comes right at the end of the extract as a portmanteau (two words combined) which wouldn’t appear in common speech that way.  Linking the deep interiority of a dream with all that sensation, and then using that final, powerful portmanteau to end the extract, gives the poem a symbolic and even surrealistic quality which hints in a very non Imagistic way, at the unconscious, and the traumas we might carry, and less about the dream itself, or even the mother who appears here as an ominous presence.  There’s a certain dynamism here that is brought in with the combination of these sensual images - the nerve-flash and cold sensation and the structure of the helix which suggests inheritance, along with the seductive, sibilant musicality of the sound.  While it is true that Imagism seeks new rhythms, there is, in this condensation, much in the way of symbolic and intense power not in keeping with the fixed object of an Imagistic approach but rather much more open, and subject to multiple interpretations, readings and ways of experiencing.  

ModPo 23: another Loneliness

It has been a little while since I've posted a gushing recommendation for the fabulous Modern and Contemporary American Poetry annual course (more like a symposium cause we keep coming back) affectionately known as ModPo and I've been dipping in for a few years but this year I'm doing the whole thing - main course, all poems, all essays - full in.  It's about my tenth time (I've been doing this course since it started 12 years ago) but a) I'm still finding new things - or as I said in the discussion forum when I phoned in, I've changed, the world has changed, and I bring my new perspective to the same poems and b) there is a lot of new material - some brought into the main course and some crowd sourced in the community section.  It's as wonderful as ever and if you haven't signed up you can still just jump right into the river and you don't have to do anything at all, or you can read one poem, or you can do full immersion or any variation of that.  But know that whatever you decide you will be welcomed and encouraged and will gain something from it - from the reading, for your writing practice, and for your sense of poetry and art and life.  In the past I've posted up my 4 essays as a way of keeping track and maybe helping others who might be interested in these pieces and I'm going to do that this year, starting with the first essay (just finished the second but I'll leave it a few weeks till I post here and might edit a bit based on feedback first) which is just 500 words on a poem by Emily Dickinson:

There is another Loneliness— That many die without Not want or friend occasions it Or circumstances or Lot

But nature sometimes, sometimes thought And who so it befall Is richer than could be divulged By mortal numeral—

My essay, titled "Loneliness as Superpower" follows:

Emily Dickinson’s“There is another Loneliness” begins, as many Dickinson poems do, as if she were responding to being called lonely or to a conversation where the word “loneliness” had been used in some conventional way, that is, a lack of social interaction (“want or friend” or maybe ‘want of friend’). The use of the word “another” seems to reference that implied context. The Loneliness (with an upper case L) that Dickinson is talking about here is not negative, but rather, a lifesaver (“many die without”). It is something powerful, and rich, and not impacted by “circumstances or Lot” but rather, is innate, as “nature” which she seems to be using here as something inherent - as opposed to nurture rather than the external environment. As so many of Dickinson’s poems are meta poetic, it’s not a stretch to think that she could be talking here of the poetic muse or a singular interiority that has the look of loneliness but is actually a superpower (“Loneliness”), rich and in a way immortal (“richer than could be divulged/By mortal numeral). The structure of the work is the classic two stanza, quatrain form though the two dashes - one in the first line and one at the very end form set of prongs are visually striking while also making creating a very subtle circularity as those dashes, both open, seem to connect the thoughts between the first line with its alternate Loneliness and the end with its mortal numeral as if in some way those two lines were in opposition to one another. One might stretch the concept of a mortal numeral to a kind of spreadsheet or accounting where life is measured by productivity rather than introspection and creativity. These opposing forces continue to shine a positive light on the other Loneliness. Rhythmically, this poem uses the standard iambic pentameter with an ABAB rhyme scheme, though naturally the rhymes are slanted so Loneliness and it are the matches along with without and Lot, thought and divulged, and befall and numeral. At first glance these words don’t seem to rhyme at all, but when reading the poem aloud, the regular meter and the placement of the words does create a rhyme pattern that seems even to the ear. There is very little alliteration in this poem, but there are interesting repetitions, such as the double ‘sometimes’ in the second stanza, and the way that Loneliness and Lot are both capitalised. In the first stanzas the words “There” and “That” in the first stanza and “But” and “By” in the second provide extra emphasis and help keep the sonics regular and contained -as a sort of constraint of form. This creates a lovely structural tension that conveys the power of a deep solitude that might look like loneliness, but is actually the creative imagination.

Compulsive Reader Newsletter October

The October Compulsive Reader Newsletter is now on its way to readers everywhere.  This month's issue has a bunch of excellent new reviews including books by TC Boyle, Marcus Rediker, Heather Cameron, Andrew Geoffrey Kwabena Moss, Denise O'Hagan and more along with several new interviews including one on Compulsive Reader Talks with Tasmanian poet Esther Ottaway, author She Doesn't Seem Autistic (you can listen directly here: https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/gcWKlKAZgDb), along with a bunch of new giveaways (we actually have 7 this month!) and the usual worldwide news roundup.  If you're a subscriber, your copy should be on its way.  If not, you can subscribe for free here: http://www.compulsivereader.com.  To grab the latest copy from the archive, visit: https://compulsivereader.com/sendpress/eyJpZCI6MCwicmVwb3J0IjoyNTI0OSwidmlldyI6InRyYWNrZXIiLCJ1cmwiOiJ7c3AtYnJvd3Nlci11cmx9In0/

Happy reading! 

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Compulsive Reader Newsletter Sept is out

The October Compulsive Reader newsletter has just gone out and is making its way through the internet to readers around the world.  This month's newsletter features reviews of books by Maina Wahome, Arthur Kayzakian,  Kate Grenville, who I'll be interviewing this weekend: https://library.lakemac.com.au/Events/Restless-Dolly-Maunder-Kate-Grenville-in-conversation, Matt Mauch, Jonathan Rosen and many others. along with two fresh book giveaways (please enter for those! We have 10,000 subscribers and only a fraction enter and they keep winning - I've set up some people with a whole library!) and new interviews along with a big book news roundup that includes the Booker, The Toronto Book Awards, and the Cundill History Prize.  You should receive it in your inbox shortly, but if you can't wait or want to check it out, you can view it in your browser now.  If you aren't already a subscriber, sign. up here:  http://www.compulsivereader.com

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(CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

CR Newsletter August

 

The Compulsive Reader Newsletter for August is now out.  This month's edition features the full July literary news round-up including, among others, the Society of Authors, the Trillion, the Forward Prize for Poetry and the Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction. We have our big review round up including Katie Farris, Ali Whitelock, Grace Lee and many more, and of course our very popular book giveaways - 2 this month.  If you haven't gotten your copy yet, it's on the way or you can get one directly from the Compulsive Reader Newsletter archive.  To sign up to the monthly newsletter visit: http://www.compulsivereader.com. 

"A Rainbow Of Books" by Dawn Endico is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

CR Newsletter July

The July Compulsive Reader Newsletter has just gone out. This month's issue has a terrific suite of new reviews including Women's Prize award winner Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver, A Dangerous Daughter by Dina Davis, and The Badass Brontës by Jane Satterfield, interviews with Rachel Rueckert, Adam Sass, and on our podcast Alisa Bryce talking about her latest book Grounded. Of course there are giveaways, and the big roundup of June's literary news.  If you can't wait or want a preview before subscribing you can check it out in the public archive here: Compulsive Reader July Newsletter

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Compulsive Reader Newsletter June

 

The June Compulsive Reader Newsletter is now on its way to inboxes everywhere - our readers are all over the world!  This month's newsletter features 3 book giveaways including our current front page giveaway for a copy of Toward the Corner of Mercy and Peace by Tracey Buchanan as well as the usual big literary news round up (so many awards!) and a dozen new reviews including the wonderful T by Alan Fyfe which has been shortlisted for the Western Australian Premier's award for an Emerging Writer. I also spoke to Alan this month at the podcast about T and also his upcoming poetry book.  You can find all that and more in our monthly newsletter, and if you can't want for it to arrive (it tends to trickle in slowly over a few days), you can view it in your browser.  If you aren't a subscriber, visit http://www.compulsivereader.com to subscribe for free. 

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Compulsive Reader Newsletter May

The latest issue of Compulsive Reader newsletter has now gone out and heading for inboxes around the world. This month's issue features 11 fresh reviews, 3 interviews (not counting our Compulsive Reader Talks interview with the wonderful Ashley Kalagian Blunt, two new giveaways of some very exciting pre-release books, and a full round-up of literary news (including a bit of news about my own upcoming festivals - both in one weekend - lucky me).  If you haven't received it yet, you can view it in your browser or to sign up for free (of course), just visit Compulsivereader.com and enter your email address in the upper right hand corner.  Couldn't be easier!  

Compulsive Reader Newsletter April is out!

This month's Compulsive Reader Newsletter has now gone out and is on its way to inboxes.  For April we've got our usual big news round-up as well as reviews of new books by the likes of Ruth Latta, Cristina Rivera Garza, Douglas Bauer, Ian McEwan, and Haji Jaber, along with two new book giveaways, a great new podcast episode featuring a genial conversation between Oisín Breen and Simon Whitby Brown, and lots more.  You can view it in your browser now or wait for it to arrive.  If you aren't already a subscriber, you can subscribe for free (and view all of our reviews) at: http://www.compulsivereader.com.  Happy reading! 

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Compulsive Reader Newsletter March

The March Compulsive Reader newsletter has now gone out. We've got more reviews than ever before this month (and 3 giveaways!) including Smog Mother by John Wall Barger, Oh My Rapture by Gemma White, Dug-Up Gun Museum by Matt Donovan, Pipette by Kim Chinquee and many more!  Plus our big literary news roundup for the previous month, a new interview at the podcast with Traumata's Meera Atkinson, and several interviews on site as well.  The newsletter is on its way now, but if you haven't gotten it, or can't wait, you can grab a copy in the archive.  If you aren't a subscriber you can sign up at compulsivereader.com

Image: Stift Broumov (17. Jhdt.) 

by Herbert Frank 

Compulsive Reader Newsletter Feb

 

The February Compulsive Reader newsletter is now out, on its way to your inbox. This month's edition features reviews of new books by authors like Caroline Goodwin, Rachel Harper, Shilo Niziolek, Lucy Dougan,  Linda Adair, Jessica Bell, and many more. We also have an extensive literary news roundup for the month of January and two new giveaways.  If you want a preview or to read it now, you can View it in your browser.  To sign up and join our worldwide community of people who love books, just visit: http://www.compulsivereader.com