Thom Thompson in Purgatory
Troy Jollimore really came out of nowhere. In 2006, his debut poetry collection won the NBCC award to apparently stun all those elitist bastards who thought they were up-to-date on contemporary poetry. Two years later, Jollimore isn't even in the poets.org database.
Like most people, I don't read a lot of poetry anymore. Songs and abstract comics are about as close as I get to free verse. At times, I've even questioned the relevance of poetry in a society as crude and unrefined as ours. But reading Troy Jollimore has made a fool of me for believing such a thing.
Thom Thompson will have you laughing your ass off at the inequity of life and the absurdity of being, and for next to nothing. Personally, I can't wait to see what he does next.
The following is one poem from the book, republished without permission. You can read an interview with Jollimore at the NBCC website.
Tom Thomson in His Library
Bookplates, he useth not. Nor needs he to.
Reason the First: all his books share his scent,
a musk of salt-sea air, pine redolent,
and hint of freshly doused campfire (suggest-
ing liberty to some, but to the rest
the reek of disappointment.) Crack the spine
and sniff: you'll know if from his cache it came.
Reason the Next: he has not loaned a book
to anyone for ten plus years. For no
one reads no more, and fewer people still
read what he reads, or feel the slightest pull
to transact business -- giftings, borrowings --
with this musty old man whose books all smell
of salt, of lonesome woods, of drenched dead flames.
Bookplates, he useth not. Nor needs he to.
Reason the First: all his books share his scent,
a musk of salt-sea air, pine redolent,
and hint of freshly doused campfire (suggest-
ing liberty to some, but to the rest
the reek of disappointment.) Crack the spine
and sniff: you'll know if from his cache it came.
Reason the Next: he has not loaned a book
to anyone for ten plus years. For no
one reads no more, and fewer people still
read what he reads, or feel the slightest pull
to transact business -- giftings, borrowings --
with this musty old man whose books all smell
of salt, of lonesome woods, of drenched dead flames.
Pyrite Radio
I love the Minutemen. Until guitarist D. Boon's unfortunate and untimely death in 1985, they were one of the most promising punk bands around. For some reason, they don't get a lot of credit, especially for their last album, Double Nickels on the Dime, which is a travesty. So this mix is dedicated to them.
1. Jyotindra Moitra & Ustad Ali Akbar // Title Music from "The Householder"
2. Minutemen // Cohesion
3. The Left Banke // I Haven't Got the Nerve
4. Minutemen // Two Beads at the End
5. Videohippos // Narwhals
6. Minutemen // Viet Nam
7. The Feelies // It's Only Life
8. Minutemen // History Lesson - Part II
9. Moonrats // Sweet Thing
10. Minutemen // My Heart and the Real World
11. Jim O'Rourke // Something Big
12. Minutemen // Corona
13. Deerhunter // Wash Off
14. Minutemen // Political Song for Michael Jackson to Sing
15. Sunset Rubdown // The Men Are Called Horsemen There
16. Minutemen // Nature Without Man
17. Robyn Hitchcock // Happy the Golden Prince
18. Minutemen // Toadies
19. The Left Banke // There's Gonna Be a Storm
20. Minutemen // The Glory of Man
21. Satyajit Ray // Montage Music from "Baska Badal"
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