Every time I come across a remarkable literary journal, I get surprised. Another one? There are already so many good ones, it seems. Could the rumor that no one reads poetry anymore be just that, a rumor?
Let’s hope so. In the meantime, I leave you with a poem by Joanna Schroeder, which appeared in issue #60 of the remarkable “Pudding Magazine.”
Splitting Up the Books
When the marriage is over,
no one wants Jane Austen.Happy endings taped up
in a cardboard boxto be given away
to others, sight unseen.When a marriage is over
the poetry books are coldleftovers, no one wants to claim
as read or to be readon summer bed sheets.
O love, be fed with apples while you may.When a marriage is over
it seems frivolous to fightover comic books. Small
paneled stories of rightand wrong, with easy villains.
Even the good guys wear masks.When a marriage is over
no one wants the science fictionfutures so dazzling
with probable improbabilitiesit is embarrassing
how much you wanted to believe.