I read some books in the public library over my Fall break, as well as some from my own collection. Amazingly, I liked all but two of them.


(142) *Paul Celan. Lightduress. Trans. Pierre Joris. 2005. 199 pp.

On this reading I just read all the poems straight through in English, without looking at the German at all. It's amazing that this was not available in English until 35 years after the poet's death.



(141) *Elizabeth Bishop. Geography III. 1976. 50 pp.

This book holds up well. I never remember having read it straight through, but I knew most of the poems.



(140) *Juliana Spahr. Response. 1996. 97 pp.

This book evokes the Opraesque 90s: tales of multiple personalities and alien abductions--critically but not without empathy. I've always liked the poem "Thrashing Seems Crazy."



(139) * Jack Spicer. Book of Magaine Verse. 1966. No page numbers.

Somehow I scored a first edition of this book from Serendipity books in Berkeley a few years ago. I've always liked the central conceit of this book.



(138) Tom Clark. Air. 1970. 51 pp.

Clark is the worst poet in America. This almost made my "not even bad" list--books I read that don't even merit mention. I don't want to find comments defending him in my comments boxes. I will crush them like little ants.



(137) Jim Harrison. Locations. 1968. 62 pp.

Harrison is a good writer, but is he a good poet? I did like the poem "Thin Ice," but on the whole the book didn't stand up to the others I've read recently.



(136) *Richard Brautigan. Rommel Drives on Into Egypt. 1970. 85 pp.

I remember hating Brautigan's poetry for its facility. I have to say, though, that this is a fun book, very much of its time.



(135) *Víctor Hernández Cruz. Mainland. 1973. 82 pp.

This book seemed very fresh and musical. An auspicious start to a day of reading poetry.