IF I DIDN'T LOVE THE RIVER

TITLE - IF I DIDN'T LOVE THE RIVER 

WRITTEN BY - ROBERT PRIEST 

GENRE - POETRY 

PUBLISHED BY - ECW PRESS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 20TH SEPTEMBER 2022 

One of the poems in Robert Priest’s superb poetry collection “If I Didn’t Love The River” is entitled “What Francesca Does To English”, and upon reading it, you will be marvelling at the things Robert Priest does to English. This poetry will awe you. 

This book has many poems about love, but maybe no actual love poems in the strictest sense of that term. But there is much about the unpredictability and violence of love, and many a broken heart. 

Stars also play a role in several of the poems, affecting our lives in ways both benign and malevolent; but always randomly. There is humour too, as in “Why I See A Therapist” where Priest bemoans that everything reminds him of the Third Reich, but even this poem turns dark. 

Lighter moments are to be found though, such as the melodic and bouncy “Device”, a twisted tribute to the all-consuming power of the smartphone and its ilk. This is followed by a similar poem, “The Like Process”, an ode to that often elusive and addictive social media conformation. 

Several of the poems are visceral rants about nature and the planet and what mankind can and does do to it. Obviously the pandemic is one of the themes covered, resulting in the hilarious “Infection Prevention for Murderers” which cautions killers to practice social distancing. Sick, funny and brilliant. 

There are many sublime moments in this collection and I am grateful to have discovered Robert Priest’s work. I loved the words and the rollercoaster rhythm Priest imposes on them. Once you “get” his poetry, it gets you too and won’t let go. Mostly dark, even the humour comes at a price; Robert Priest makes you regret laughing as he skilfully twists the tone of the poems. Priest utilises many styles and poetical forms with a cornucopia of themes and images; the results are sometimes delicate, often brutal, but always stunning.

PLENITUDE

TITLE - PLENITUDE 

WRITTEN BY - DANIEL SARAH KARASIK 

PUBLISHED BY - BOOK*HUG PRESS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 7TH APRIL 2022 

Daniel Sarah Karasik’s “Plenitude” is a futuristic rallying cry for a generalisation of identity and society. These verses/passages are dense, kinetic and intelligent; rhythmic and often profane - adult trans-formational poetry for an undefined future. 

Daniel Sarah Karasik’s work is political, angry and confrontational, and it is quite breathtaking. The key poem is “trans-socialist” in which Karasik dreams of a society in which everything is, rather than one in which everything has to be something - a kind of communism (a term used with caution here) where we don’t have to worry about saying “communism” and “gender is reborn as pure play”. 

The poems are vital and sexy, in fact downright filthy in parts, often darkly funny but always screamingly honest. Karasik works hard at making you (the reader or anyone) like them and accept them, while at the same time liking and accepting themselves. Chapters are illustrated with striking graffiti art which suits the contents well. 

I know nothing about the trans condition but I like the future being created here, and I can enjoy this excellent poetry for what it is.

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IN THE CITY OF PIGS

TITLE - IN THE CITY OF PIGS 

WRITTEN BY - ANDRE FORGET 

PUBLISHED BY - DUNDURN PRESS

PUBLICATION DATE - 12TH JULY 2022

Dundurn Press’ imprint Rare Machines has produced some impressive left-field novels in its short life, and André Forget’s “In the City of Pigs” joins that list with inscrutable aplomb. 

Forget has a succinct style that is a joy to read, and the novel has an air of clinical intellectualism. His descriptive writing is vivid and rich as he describes the sights and sounds of Toronto. A knowledge of Toronto would probably add another dimension to the story, as it is very much a love-letter to that city, it’s history and present, but non-residents can read the book and easily immerse themselves in a city so well described. 

As to the story itself, the book deals largely with an underground avant-garde music collective, complete with modern agitprop Twitter posts and anonymous videos in abandoned warehouses; an exciting premise which evokes the rave culture of the ‘90s with a postmodern sheen. But Fera Civitatem’s plans are more far-reaching than that, demanding a kind of reimagining of society itself. Forget’s depiction of one of their secret concerts is visceral and brutal, the atonal lovechild of a philharmonic orchestra and the Jim Rose Circus.

Undoubtedly the book is pretentious in parts, and in many ways cold and lacking emotion, but not in a way that I could take seriously. In fact, the pretentiousness seemed almost to be played for laughs. Readers with a love of classical musical will find much to enjoy (and, no doubt, hate) in the book. 

Characterisation is a little hit and miss, with only Alexander really standing out amongst a mostly indistinguishable supporting cast made up of unlikeable arty types. Chapters are generally short, maybe some a little too short, but it all seems just right, and the storytelling is brisk. 

Part contemporary fiction, part exposé of economic divisions, part musicological thriller; I would call the book intellectually absurdist, and despite its pretension, has a strong thread of irreverence and imagination running through it. While not precisely unputdownable, I did find myself picking up the book often for just one more chapter. It is definitely not for everyone, but I am comfortable with novels that are unconventional, and I enjoyed this one very much.

 

THE BOOK OF GRIEF AND HAMBURGERS

TITLE - THE BOOK OF GRIEF AND HAMBURGERS 

WRITTEN BY - STUART ROSS 

PUBLISHED BY - ECW PRESS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 5TH APRIL, 2022 

 Hamburgers have featured heavily in Stuart Ross’ poems over the years. Usually introduced, according to the poet himself, when emotions were running high and some levity was needed, they work overtime in this remarkable book. 

In the mostly autobiographical, aptly-titled “The Book of Grief and Hamburgers”, Stuart Ross discusses vegetarianism, Jewishness, Kafka, hamburgers and even people called Hamburger, but mostly he writes about grief; grief following the death of his brother, (something I can relate to), the death of friends and about famous writers who wrote about grief….and hamburgers. A book-length essay, written in verses much like a long poem, the text flows easily, its length unnoticed or irrelevant, like a conversation with an old friend. Famous quotes from films and notable last words pepper the book, albeit after having been “hamburger-fied” (my word for having key words removed and replaced with “hamburger”. Drawings, family photos and poems by other poets also make poignant appearances. 

If you hadn’t already guessed, this is a tough book. As it progresses, the reader gets the impression that Ross is using hamburgers as a “safe space” (to use a modern term) to avoid facing his grief. And there is a lot of it, as friend after friend contacts him to tell him they are either ill or already facing death. Being surrounded by death prompts him to consider suicide. Correctly identifying grief as more of a process of coming to terms, he invites the reader along for the ride. He asks difficult questions - what were his brothers’ last thoughts? Did they know they were dying? Questions that we have undoubtedly asked ourselves at such times. 

Ross makes the profound and affecting observation that he is alive in a world where he will never talk with his parents or brothers again, and wishes he could not be alive himself. At one point he realises that he is procrastinating about facing his own grief in the book, but the reader is happy to stick with him, especially when it’s this well-written.

This stunning work is a eulogy for those who have already passed, and a pained scream for connection with those who are still living. Cathartic, profound, remorseful and brilliant, “The Book of Grief and Hamburgers” is about grief and learning how to grieve, about seeing someone for what might be the last time, and as someone who has been very recently bereaved, at times the book is almost too much to bear. Anyone holding out for a happy ending will be disappointed, but as a way of working through grief this book is a therapy session that you’ll be glad you signed up for.