American Incident

by Brian Henry

Composed of a scattered novella ("Patricide in C Minor"), a performance text ("Resistance"), lyric poems, anti-lyrics, verse essays, prose poems and their de-formed counterparts, short fictions, hybrids, parodies, dramatic monologues, and works less amenable to classification, American Incident revels in polyphony and political disquiet.

Genres: Poetry

Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[W.B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no idea when I really read this book...I was working at DHL helping to build their Evil Empire so it was probably much earlier than 2004...it wasn't the Salt edition. I know where this book actually is in my third floor study so that means I really like it. It rests on a vibrant red LACK table from IKEA...IKEA's take on the parson's table. I like it when poets write in a catholicity of styles and manage to make it hold together as a book. Many attempt this; few succeed. Plus the fragmented "novel" that runs through the book actually works too...my favorite writing in here though are the post-avanty takes on lyric poetry...just enough formalistic shoving combined with just enough genuine feeling...rather like edgy sex....he writes really good criticism too, although he was terribly mean to Louise Gluck whose writing I like...plus I have a crush on him...so tonight I will dream about him and Louise and I in a motel room somewhere shoving formalism through emotion together...he should write a poem about the Paris Hilton video appearing in South Park and how it was a magic moment when her green eyes on the bed were simulacrized to cartoon green eyes...he could do it...