Objects of mercy
Herta Muller’s The Appointment is a book about objects and their power to make life real, make life livable. Humans are useless because they have all given up. The nameless narrator narrates her life on a tram en route to yet another interrogation by Major Albu, one of countless henchmen working to keep the Communist […]
The Brazilian Bovary
In honor of a recent trip to Rio, I revisited Dom Casmurro, the classic of Brazilian classics. Normally I don’t revisit classics because, no matter how relevant, their language has ceased to be current. But Dom Casmurro is the exception, and not just among its Brazilian peers. Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, its author, makes […]
Poetry to die for
W.H. Auden’s “Epitaph on a Tyrant.” Rio de Janeiro, 2013.
A Mutis woman
Alvaro Mutis, one of Colombia’s most beloved writers, died today at age 90. A surprising number of media outlets are reporting the news and recalling Maqroll, the sailor that Mutis wrote to life. But, he created another memorable seaman, Captain Jon Iturri, who plays the hero in The Tramp Steamer’s Last Port of Call, one of the […]
The Paperbook has my ‘Babies on Planes’
Congratulations to Jayde Ashe of The Paperbook Blog for finishing her second issue. And many thanks for including my poem “Babies on Planes” in this generous effort to showcase writers from all over the world. To read The Paperbook Collective click below: The Paperbook Collective ~ Issue Two 2013..
Get a Life: Step 5 – Disaster
Disaster is private and, sadly, inevitable. Get a Life, Nadine Gordimer
Get a Life: Step 1 – Love and a Kid
I must confess I did not know who Nadine Gordimer was until a few months ago. At a used bookstore, I picked up a copy of one of her novels, prompted by its arresting title: Get a Life. This novel is not a relaxing beach-read. But it is worth the effort made. It’s probably not […]
Upside down crucifix
An image I loved from The Split by Marie Howe. Published in her book The Good Thief. Part of The National Poetry Series. This one selected by Margaret Atwood. Read on American Airlines flight 915, July 2013
Maya – who? Mayakovsky! Part IV
An unhappy near-ending in Vladimir Mayakovsky’s poem The Cloud in Trousers. Read New York, 2004
Maya – who? Mayakovsky! Part III (Or heartbreak done right)
Vladimir Mayakovsky gets dumped. The third of four excerpts from his poem The Cloud in Trousers. Read New York, 2004. Related articles Mayakovsky’s “The Brooklyn Bridge”: A Short Essay on the Futurist Poem (talesofrussia.wordpress.com) Mayakovsky’s daughter speaks out on her parents’ love story and her own legacy (rbth.ru)
Maya – who? Mayakovsky! Part II
This is part two of four excerpts I will be posting from Vladimir Mayakovsky’s poem The Cloud in Trousers. Read New York, 2004
Maya – who? Mayakovsky! Part I
There is fun to be had in Russian literature via Vladimir Mayakovsky. Here is one of four excerpts from his titanic poem The Cloud in Trousers. Read New York, 2004 Related articles Mayakovsky monument attracts dissidents and dreamers (indrus.in) A look back at the life of Vladimir Mayakovsky (indrus.in) Understanding Mayakovsky, the dark and […]
Primera inversión
Arranco pequeño: olvido el apartamento vacío y frío. Quiero un piano negro y mío. Pararlo junto a mi escritorio y mirarlo mientras escribo. Escribir o tocar: es un mundo completo la soledad que contemplo. Tal vez mi cintura, mis cejas, me lo permitirán. Escrito 2008
Si todavía te provoca hablar
Lo que quiero que digas es que te encantaba conmigo; que me ves hoy y piensas lo que te encantaba conmigo. Que te encantaba conmigo la primera luz débil del día, la luz recién apagada de la tarde, o de la noche, o de la noche tarde. Que te encantaba conmigo el encuentro […]
Poetry of the witch
From Ginosko Literary Journal’s 12th Edition. To read the complete poem, download the entire journal here. For other editions of Ginosko, click here.