Satires

by Garrett Buhl Robinson

This book will delight the easy reader while also intriguing the thoughtful scholar. The poems are composed in formal structures that provide more tickle to the topics. There are the quatrains of encapsulated rhymes in "The Pond and the Palace", the heroic couplets of "Standing at Attention" and a balladic eclogue on aesthetics in a cow pasture in "Beauty and the Beetle". The book also contains three more balladic caprioles that jest and jibe on sundry subjects. One visits ancient Macedonia where young Alexander the Great struggles at learning geometry despite having one of the most illustrious instructors of civilization on leave from the Lyceum - no less than the peripatetic Aristotle ponderously pacing in "A Classic Lesson". Another ballad comically portrays the ironic (or perhaps siliconic or maybe transistor-diculous?) introduction of Artificial Intelligence into the world of Academia with a computer that composes poetry - "The Milton Machine". The book concludes with contrasting "Presentations of Poetry" with the magical appearance of a mythical creature playing a supporting role, reminding us that the nature of creativity is not what we expect whether we consider the extraordinary novelty of scholastic exegesis or the whimsical flights of poetic fancy. The book's back cover also provides a short little quip in verse of the Poet in the Park where the author depicts the ironies of the spinning wheel of fortune in the poem "Good Luck!"

84 pages, Paperback

Published August 1, 2023

About the author

On a cold February night in 1992, Garrett Buhl Robinson jumped on a coal train and embarked on a journey across North America. Over the span of a year, he hitchhiked the highways, rode the rails on freight trains and hiked 800 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail.

Eventually, Garrett settled in Portland, Oregon where he completed his first novel in 2000. Upon finishing the novel and unsuccessfully marketing the book, he left for Alaska to work at a salmon cannery to pay the debts he had accumulated with various book clubs. His cherished volumes of Proust's In Search of Lost Time put him over the edge financially, but he never hesitates to endure hardship for the sake of beauty.

After two summers in Alaska, Garrett moved to San Francisco where he composed two collections of poetry. One of these collections is illustrated with his own abstract vignettes. He also completed his second novel, Zoë.

In 2011, Garrett moved to New York City to further his literary career. While supporting himself at various jobs, Garrett composed his third novel, Nunatak, based on his experiences working in Alaska, and a book length poem, Martha, celebrating his love for performance dance.

In 2012, he began marketing his books directly to the public. In Midtown Manhattan, along 5th Avenue, he is frequently found reciting his poetry and singing from his musical.

After publishing two more collections of poetry, flowing stone and Broken Open, Garrett made his Off-Broadway debut performing his musical, Letters to Zoey, at Theatre Row in New York City. The musical is his adaptation of his second novel, Zoë.