Category: Book Review

Book Review

Mother Is Not Mothering: Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died

For the past almost two years, it’s been all but impossible to go into any bookstore without seeing the now indelible image of Jennette McCurdy holding a pink urn with confetti sprouting out of it as she bears an expression somewhere between hopeful, happy and defiant. As the book, titled I’m Glad My Mom Died, makes clear, it took McCurdy a very long time to … Continue reading Mother Is Not Mothering: Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died

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Book Review

Luminous Loops: A Review of Chloe Briggs’ and Lillian Davies’ Playgrounds by Malik Crumpler

Playgrounds, a new cross-genre art book by Chloe Briggs and Lillian Davies, is something seriously superb. In just thirty-three pages, Briggs and Davies have created an accessible experience during which the reader listens carefully to a casual yet exhilarating conversation between a professional visual artist and a professional writer. As they elaborate on their connection to the history of parks, feminism and creative crafts, the … Continue reading Luminous Loops: A Review of Chloe Briggs’ and Lillian Davies’ Playgrounds by Malik Crumpler

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Book Review

Kat Giordano’s Thumbsucker Gives Permission to Be Otherwise by Charles Holdefer

One possible scenario for this book review could go as follows: 1) old boomer guy reads poetry collection called Thumbsucker; 2) it is highly personal work, written by a millennial; 3) old boomer guy is perplexed or downright annoyed by the preoccupations of the poet; 4) He just doesn’t get it. This review respects the first half of that scenario—but, happily, the second half does … Continue reading Kat Giordano’s Thumbsucker Gives Permission to Be Otherwise by Charles Holdefer

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Book Review

I Love Paris: Rufo Quintavalle’s Elucidative Portrait of Urban Life by Audrey Vinkenes

Life is a carnival of extremes. That much Rufo Quintavalle seems to be aware of, as he makes apparent in his latest poetry collection, I Love Paris. Not only regaling us with truthful and haunting visions, but also showing us that existence is rarely black and white. Particularly in Paris. Where it’s more like a rain-soaked panoply of hues muted in gray.  Masterfully tracing the undulating freedoms … Continue reading I Love Paris: Rufo Quintavalle’s Elucidative Portrait of Urban Life by Audrey Vinkenes

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Book Review

Victor Marrero’s Atlas, Bound Offers Hymns for The Oppressed, Hope for The Downtrodden by Jennifer O’Grady

Atlas, Bound, Victor Marrero’s striking first collection of poems, takes its inspiration from Michelangelo’s unfinished sculptures known as the “Four Prisoners,” or “Four Slaves,” housed at the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence. Begun by the artist as embellishments for a pope’s tomb, the statues appear to be both carrying—and struggling to emerge from—the partially chiseled marble that contains and obscures them. The book’s opening poem, “Variations … Continue reading Victor Marrero’s Atlas, Bound Offers Hymns for The Oppressed, Hope for The Downtrodden by Jennifer O’Grady

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Book Review

Fathoming the Abyss: Donna Dallas’ Megalodon by J. Khan

“Sharks are as primordial as fear itself.”-Willow Defebaugh The megalodon was a massive shark, with six-foot jaws and triangular teeth up to seven inches long. Such a creature serves as a fitting emblem of Donna Dallas’ latest book, named in the extinct beast’s honor. In her title poem, Dallas explores her metaphorical relationship to this massive, shadowy creature that lurks beside her. Megalodon represents the destructive evil … Continue reading Fathoming the Abyss: Donna Dallas’ Megalodon by J. Khan

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