Reading Roundup: May 22

 Brief reactions to what I read last month:

Plainwater: Essays and Poems by Anne Carson. The one that I remember most is the travelogue with the "Emperor of China." I also remember being impressed by but not really understanding some of the poems. 

How to Be Drawn by Terance Hayes. So, as you can see, I was settling accounts from National Poetry Month. Again, a generally positive but terribly undetailed recollection. Earliest and least impressive Hayes I've read.

"Dead Djinn in Cairo" by P. Djeli Clark. Listened to the audio--at 90 minutes I think that it is most likely classified as a short story, but I listed it so I'll keep it here. 

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. A long novel with more than a few pleasures in it. Conjures Dickens at times, but not my favorite Tartt. 

Reckless: A Ghost In You by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. Feature on the punk rock projectionist. I haven't been floored by this series, but I keep reading it. The ingredients are to my liking, but they aren't quite coming together yet. 

A Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion. You feel bad criticizing a memoir about loosing a spouse (especially since her daughter will die soon too) but this is cliched and Didion continues to be not so much unaware as dismissive of her privilege. 

The Last Interview by David Shields. Did he really "write" this book, which consists only of questions asked him by interviewers? Some of those questions are ultra obnoxious.  

Moonraker by Ian Fleming. The third Bond novel, and one I had missed. Great to listen to while driving--just complicated enough to hold your attention (i.e., not very). Bond does not get the girl.

Master of Djinn by P. Djeli Clark. Wrote about at some length elsewhere.

The Bottom of the Harbor by Joseph Mitchell. A set of profiles about water people in and near New York. The best of the month.

Summary: Eleven books (or 10). Two poetry (one combined with essays). Two essays (one combined with poetry). Three novels, one long. One comic (can that be right?). One memoir. One sui generis (Shields). One "novelette" I maybe shouldn't have counted. 

STL #126.5: ATOP III (Postmortem)

 So, about a year ago I said I'd follow up with a post reflecting on what I learned from the third official "test of poetry")  (ATOP III).  I meant to do it in a week or so, but obviously that didn't happen. A lot has happened since then though--we moved and bought a house, for one. I don't really remember what I was going to say, though I mentioned something about making a list. In writing up these notes, a two list structure fell out.

First up, I noticed a few things in rereading my notes:

1. An extended argument about poetry and society thread throughout. Basically, the world that values poetry so much that writing poem makes you famous or changes minds is nigh unimaginable to me. This might be linked to the very idea of memory. 
2. I liked to talk about the "sonics" of a poem a lot. I used to say "sound patterns" but I guess that felt worn out. But I'm not as into 'sound reflecting sense' as I used to be (or maybe I've grown too obtuse for that).
3. "When in doubt, count it out." I see that if I don't know what to say, I describe the structure. And sometimes find something to say. 
4. There's this idea of "deep structure" which means something like elemental plot as reflected in the poem's unfolding. 
5. Looking for new forms, new constructions, new insights.
6. Imagery, sound, meaning. 
7. A "spell" (in the magical sense) is a "patterned totality" (in the Hugh Kenner sense).
8. A poem is an occasion for noticing (or "simple noticing.")

I keep trying to carry forward a list from the previous tests. So I've copied the last list (in bold), and added some notes to represent more recent developments. 

1. Complicated surfaces. Noted in "A spell is a patterned totality" and "When in doubt, count it out."
2. Luminous detail. "A poem is an occasion for noticing" might apply here. 
3. Competing systems. Part of an argument about poetry. Poetries beget arguments?
4. Slight shifts. Noticing. Counting.
5. Sonic design. Still there.
6. Reserved mystery. I kind of think this doesn't mean much at all.