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Best,
greatest poetry book of all time
(live update book)
(live update book)
- GenresPoetry
425 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 9, 2023
1 person is currently reading
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 14, 2023
In today's literary landscape of books with trigger warnings, I'm pleased to say I've found one needing no such thing, because the entire book itself should be considered ONE BIG TRIGGER WARNING. From the author's ugly mug on the cover to the grand finale mass extinction event, there is nary a trigger (figuratively or literally) Scarlotti won't pull on you and himself in these pages.
I think it's safe to say that most readers will be entirely put off by all the violence, some of it sexual in nature. The murder/suicide obsession. Reading this book almost feels like what it would be like to read a would-be serial killer's therapy journal. So, you're not expected to empathize with or endorse any of the attitudes or behaviors on display in some of these poems, but by and large they make for compelling reading regardless. One gets the sense that there is more than just the typical edgelord thing going on here. Behind many of these poems, there is a certain sense of vulnerability, tenderness, and even a great deal of (utterly pitch black) humor. I realize that must seem like a strange thing to say re: some of the aforementioned content, but somehow Scarlotti makes it work.
So, if you'd like to read a book by someone who can't decide whether they need to kill all eight billion people on planet Earth or whether they just need a McChicken sandwich, you may want to consider giving this a try. If not, I'd steer far clear if I were you, because Johnny "The Grate" Scarlotti has given us his very Best.
I think it's safe to say that most readers will be entirely put off by all the violence, some of it sexual in nature. The murder/suicide obsession. Reading this book almost feels like what it would be like to read a would-be serial killer's therapy journal. So, you're not expected to empathize with or endorse any of the attitudes or behaviors on display in some of these poems, but by and large they make for compelling reading regardless. One gets the sense that there is more than just the typical edgelord thing going on here. Behind many of these poems, there is a certain sense of vulnerability, tenderness, and even a great deal of (utterly pitch black) humor. I realize that must seem like a strange thing to say re: some of the aforementioned content, but somehow Scarlotti makes it work.
So, if you'd like to read a book by someone who can't decide whether they need to kill all eight billion people on planet Earth or whether they just need a McChicken sandwich, you may want to consider giving this a try. If not, I'd steer far clear if I were you, because Johnny "The Grate" Scarlotti has given us his very Best.
August 20, 2023
3 1/2 stars. The psycho-shock rocker of indie poetry is back with a collection of his best HITS.
"yesss...
i think that is a great idea...
definitely hole some"
-from 'cervixbruiser'
So, let me start off by saying that if you are someone who hasn't yet worked through your own traumas, or you get offended easily, steer clear. Should be a given, but ya know...
I do prefer the darker side of humor. Even offensive humor. I always did, even as a child. I was always laughing at 'unfunny' things in school and getting in trouble. Who the eff was this 'funny' judge, I thought. If we are all individuals, how can there be a set funny and unfunny? I was calling bullshit by seven. Because I had a covert narcissist in the family (i mean, i didn't know the term but saw she was two completely different people. And few knew the real her), I knew things weren't always as they seem. Case in point: good, clean comedy... Bill Cosby. Ha! I felt the offensive stuff was less full of bullshit. And I really hated bullshit. Basically, we are all actors here on this stage. And I always thought the more 'clean' or 'good' someone was, the more shit they were hiding. (enter twenty years of paranoia and being prescribed every wrong drug on the market). oh well. Back to the star of the show!
No doubt, there are moments in Scarlotti's work that turn my stomach or get my eyes stuck back in my head from rolling so hard, or make me drink too much that night but, I'm pretty sure, that's the point. The character of Scarlotti is out to touch a nerve or fifty. He's in the kitchen to stir the pot. He can be mostly predictable but, just when you think you've got him figured out, he tosses in an awkward vulnerable moment. (they are in there, i swear..) And so, I get the vibe of an average depressed clown who lives vicariously through fantasy moments of being more like Ted Bundy than Al Bundy. He just doesn't have the charm and he really can't be bothered to be too calculating. He sort of goes with the flow and settles for a slightly more aloof version of The Joker that wants to watch the world burn, but mostly would like to have the guts to kill himself. It's quite cartoonish. (I always think in my head, 'aw, shucks, maybe next time, Johnny...) He does put in effort from time to time. I do find an authentic voice in Scarlotti in the angle he slices his humor, no matter how disturbing.
I gather the more extreme moments are just fleeting psychopathic tendencies/ thoughts that get him through the stupid situations he finds himself in and laugh it all off. Topped off with the character's obsession with being a poet. That's my take, anyway. Because I've given his work this context, I can enjoy it (mostly horrified) and go about my day. Johnny seems determined to leave out no one when it comes to who he's willing to offend. He doesn't give a rat's fck. But imho, all the best artists and comics are like that. It's a massive trigger warning-shit-show. And if you don't wanna get fckd in the head for a bit, don't read his books. 'Cause you can't unread them. It's not something you can read in one sitting either. Reading his work always in small spurts is highly recommended, lol. It's no different than a horror movie though. And we praise those, so really, what is the difference? It's entertainment. If you don't want to be offended, stay snug in bed. And wait for your nightmares?
My personal faves:
(right before massive psychotic break) (/right before 2 mo stay in psych ward)
first time having chia seeds
to vacate in the land of milk and honey
break
{stu tittybuttdickass}
suicide by cop
savoir fantasy
i'm going to be the next sylvia plath
"yesss...
i think that is a great idea...
definitely hole some"
-from 'cervixbruiser'
So, let me start off by saying that if you are someone who hasn't yet worked through your own traumas, or you get offended easily, steer clear. Should be a given, but ya know...
I do prefer the darker side of humor. Even offensive humor. I always did, even as a child. I was always laughing at 'unfunny' things in school and getting in trouble. Who the eff was this 'funny' judge, I thought. If we are all individuals, how can there be a set funny and unfunny? I was calling bullshit by seven. Because I had a covert narcissist in the family (i mean, i didn't know the term but saw she was two completely different people. And few knew the real her), I knew things weren't always as they seem. Case in point: good, clean comedy... Bill Cosby. Ha! I felt the offensive stuff was less full of bullshit. And I really hated bullshit. Basically, we are all actors here on this stage. And I always thought the more 'clean' or 'good' someone was, the more shit they were hiding. (enter twenty years of paranoia and being prescribed every wrong drug on the market). oh well. Back to the star of the show!
No doubt, there are moments in Scarlotti's work that turn my stomach or get my eyes stuck back in my head from rolling so hard, or make me drink too much that night but, I'm pretty sure, that's the point. The character of Scarlotti is out to touch a nerve or fifty. He's in the kitchen to stir the pot. He can be mostly predictable but, just when you think you've got him figured out, he tosses in an awkward vulnerable moment. (they are in there, i swear..) And so, I get the vibe of an average depressed clown who lives vicariously through fantasy moments of being more like Ted Bundy than Al Bundy. He just doesn't have the charm and he really can't be bothered to be too calculating. He sort of goes with the flow and settles for a slightly more aloof version of The Joker that wants to watch the world burn, but mostly would like to have the guts to kill himself. It's quite cartoonish. (I always think in my head, 'aw, shucks, maybe next time, Johnny...) He does put in effort from time to time. I do find an authentic voice in Scarlotti in the angle he slices his humor, no matter how disturbing.
I gather the more extreme moments are just fleeting psychopathic tendencies/ thoughts that get him through the stupid situations he finds himself in and laugh it all off. Topped off with the character's obsession with being a poet. That's my take, anyway. Because I've given his work this context, I can enjoy it (mostly horrified) and go about my day. Johnny seems determined to leave out no one when it comes to who he's willing to offend. He doesn't give a rat's fck. But imho, all the best artists and comics are like that. It's a massive trigger warning-shit-show. And if you don't wanna get fckd in the head for a bit, don't read his books. 'Cause you can't unread them. It's not something you can read in one sitting either. Reading his work always in small spurts is highly recommended, lol. It's no different than a horror movie though. And we praise those, so really, what is the difference? It's entertainment. If you don't want to be offended, stay snug in bed. And wait for your nightmares?
My personal faves:
(right before massive psychotic break) (/right before 2 mo stay in psych ward)
first time having chia seeds
to vacate in the land of milk and honey
break
{stu tittybuttdickass}
suicide by cop
savoir fantasy
i'm going to be the next sylvia plath
September 23, 2024
halfway thru the boko, i started picturing a new south park character writing it ^^
sayonara still my fave.
sayonara still my fave.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews