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A Bakeable Feast
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 13, 2025
“A BAKEABLE FEAST is Klecko’s Masterwork”
I’ve never met somebody
Quite like Klecko
I had heard all sorts of stories about Klecko
Through my father
They met at a bar
They realized they both grew up
In the same neighborhood
Where Klecko had spent his formative years
Through my father’s description of Klecko
I knew I had to meet him
The first time I met Klecko
It was at that same bar he met my father
Klecko amused me so much
He was funny, confident, and loud
Looking back on it now
I would bet he knew I was amused
We chatted about movies
Something in which I am passionate about
Klecko asked me
If I had seen The Deer Hunter
I told him no
He responded,
How can you call yourself a movie guy
If you haven’t seen that movie
I paused in awe
It embarrasses me to say, but
I had never heard of that movie before
But hearing Klecko mention it piqued my interest in it
I needed to find time to watch it
But as of today
I have not
However
I did finally read
Klecko’s most recent memoir
A BAKEABLE FEAST
I had only ever read one memoir before this one
I didn’t like it
I was forced to read it in eighth grade
I found it boring
Dull
Tedious
But with A BAKEABLE FEAST
I found it to be the opposite
It was a delightful read
Only because
I know Klecko
I don’t know him too well
As I’ve only ever met him three times
But gosh, I have to say
I admire his writing style
It’s simple
Easy to follow
Easy to write
But brilliant
I haven’t read a book since 2021
Because the amount of the words on each page
Intimidated me
But with A BAKEABLE FEAST
It is easy to pick up
And put down
Although I never wanted to put it down
I only did
When the airplane landed
And my brother Luke and I
Had to get off the plane
At the Denver Airport
To find baggage claim
You best believe
When we returned to that airport three days later
I returned to reading A BAKEABLE FEAST
And finished it
It was beautiful
In a variety of ways
I appreciated Klecko
For his vulnerability
On each page
In a world where some find vulnerability to be a weakness
Klecko persevered
And wrote his masterwork
I look to read
3 A.M. AUSTIN TEXAS next
To learn more about Klecko
As I end this review
Here are some of my favorite Baking Memories
From A BAKEABLE FEAST
In no particular order
- Baking Memory #5
- Baking Memory #6
- Baking Memory #11
- Baking Memory #13
- Baking Memory #14
- Baking Memory #20
- Baking Memory #23
- Baking Memory #24
- Baking Memory #26
- Baking Memory #33
- Baking Memory #38
- Baking Memory #42
- Baking Memory #44
- Baking Memory #47
- Baking Memory #51
- Baking Memory #58
- Baking Memory #59
- Baking Memory #61
- Baking Memory #64
- Baking Memory #65
- Baking Memory #66
- Baking Memory #68
- Baking Memory #71
- Baking Memory #76
- Baking Memory #79
- Baking Memory #81
- Baking Memory #87
- Baking Memory #88
- Baking Memory #93
- Baking Memory #97
- Baking Memory #100
- Baking Memory #104
- Baking Memory #106
- Baking Memory #110
- Baking Memory #111
- Baking Memory #114
- Baking Memory #116
- Baking Memory #120
- Baking Memory #122
- Baking Memory #125
- Baking Memory #127
- Baking Memory #128
- Baking Memory #129
- Baking Memory #131
- Baking Memory #133
- Baking Memory #136
- Baking Memory #143
- Baking Memory #149
- Baking Memory #153
- Baking Memory #158 (But when there’s nobody available, It never hurts to make up conversations With an absent friend)
- Baking Memory #166
- Baking Memory #171
- Baking Memory #172
- Baking Memory #178
- Baking Memory #180
- Baking Memory #184
- Baking Memory #185
- Baking Memory #187
- Baking Memory #190
- Baking Memory #194
- Baking Memory #196
- Baking Memory #197
- Baking Memory #199
- Baking Memory #210
I’ve never met somebody
Quite like Klecko
I had heard all sorts of stories about Klecko
Through my father
They met at a bar
They realized they both grew up
In the same neighborhood
Where Klecko had spent his formative years
Through my father’s description of Klecko
I knew I had to meet him
The first time I met Klecko
It was at that same bar he met my father
Klecko amused me so much
He was funny, confident, and loud
Looking back on it now
I would bet he knew I was amused
We chatted about movies
Something in which I am passionate about
Klecko asked me
If I had seen The Deer Hunter
I told him no
He responded,
How can you call yourself a movie guy
If you haven’t seen that movie
I paused in awe
It embarrasses me to say, but
I had never heard of that movie before
But hearing Klecko mention it piqued my interest in it
I needed to find time to watch it
But as of today
I have not
However
I did finally read
Klecko’s most recent memoir
A BAKEABLE FEAST
I had only ever read one memoir before this one
I didn’t like it
I was forced to read it in eighth grade
I found it boring
Dull
Tedious
But with A BAKEABLE FEAST
I found it to be the opposite
It was a delightful read
Only because
I know Klecko
I don’t know him too well
As I’ve only ever met him three times
But gosh, I have to say
I admire his writing style
It’s simple
Easy to follow
Easy to write
But brilliant
I haven’t read a book since 2021
Because the amount of the words on each page
Intimidated me
But with A BAKEABLE FEAST
It is easy to pick up
And put down
Although I never wanted to put it down
I only did
When the airplane landed
And my brother Luke and I
Had to get off the plane
At the Denver Airport
To find baggage claim
You best believe
When we returned to that airport three days later
I returned to reading A BAKEABLE FEAST
And finished it
It was beautiful
In a variety of ways
I appreciated Klecko
For his vulnerability
On each page
In a world where some find vulnerability to be a weakness
Klecko persevered
And wrote his masterwork
I look to read
3 A.M. AUSTIN TEXAS next
To learn more about Klecko
As I end this review
Here are some of my favorite Baking Memories
From A BAKEABLE FEAST
In no particular order
- Baking Memory #5
- Baking Memory #6
- Baking Memory #11
- Baking Memory #13
- Baking Memory #14
- Baking Memory #20
- Baking Memory #23
- Baking Memory #24
- Baking Memory #26
- Baking Memory #33
- Baking Memory #38
- Baking Memory #42
- Baking Memory #44
- Baking Memory #47
- Baking Memory #51
- Baking Memory #58
- Baking Memory #59
- Baking Memory #61
- Baking Memory #64
- Baking Memory #65
- Baking Memory #66
- Baking Memory #68
- Baking Memory #71
- Baking Memory #76
- Baking Memory #79
- Baking Memory #81
- Baking Memory #87
- Baking Memory #88
- Baking Memory #93
- Baking Memory #97
- Baking Memory #100
- Baking Memory #104
- Baking Memory #106
- Baking Memory #110
- Baking Memory #111
- Baking Memory #114
- Baking Memory #116
- Baking Memory #120
- Baking Memory #122
- Baking Memory #125
- Baking Memory #127
- Baking Memory #128
- Baking Memory #129
- Baking Memory #131
- Baking Memory #133
- Baking Memory #136
- Baking Memory #143
- Baking Memory #149
- Baking Memory #153
- Baking Memory #158 (But when there’s nobody available, It never hurts to make up conversations With an absent friend)
- Baking Memory #166
- Baking Memory #171
- Baking Memory #172
- Baking Memory #178
- Baking Memory #180
- Baking Memory #184
- Baking Memory #185
- Baking Memory #187
- Baking Memory #190
- Baking Memory #194
- Baking Memory #196
- Baking Memory #197
- Baking Memory #199
- Baking Memory #210
February 23, 2024
Danny Klecko, known by the mononym Klecko, would probably make fun of me for using the word “mononym” in the first sentence of this book review. Klecko is a poet and a baker, and his most recent book, published in December of 2023, is A Bakeable Feast: Bread. Sex. Honor.
A Bakeable Feast is a collection of 211 poems and taken together they offer insightful glimpses into humanity. Klecko’s poems are sometimes sweet, sometimes crusty, but they are always bursting with the flavor of real life. It’s hard to pick out specific lines I like from Klecko’s poems, because I just want you to read the whole poem.
Some of my favorite lines are in “Baking Memory #64”
“People are flawed—People are stupid
They disappoint
And seldom deserve trust
But if you stand outside an airport
When people send those they love away
It might be just enough to give you hope” (p.68)
There are many humorous moments through A Bakeable Feast. Klecko is Saint Paul, through and through, and every Saint Paulite will appreciate these lines:
“Because I was tired, Because I was lazy
Because I have money to burn
I stopped at Kowalski’s
Knowing they would allow me the pleasure
Of paying 40% more than their competitors” (p.138)
One of my favorite poems is “Baking Memory #131.” Klecko tells us about his attempts to work with young men who had recently gotten out of jail. They all ended up going back to prison. Klecko tells his wife that he has failed, and she offers him the wisdom:
“None of us has the power to grant healing
But we can offer moments worth remembering” (p.204)
Moments worth remembering, I love that. Marcel Proust would appreciate “Baking Memory #146,” Klecko’s ode to the madeleine. After Proust read Klecko’s poem, it would probably spur Proust to write another volume of his memoirs.
“Baking Memory #171” is another favorite of mine, as Klecko describes “The Quiet Man,” an owner of the bakery that Klecko didn’t always get along with at first. Over time, Klecko came to appreciate him.
“At times I thought he might be an angel
When I found out he shared a birthday
With Elvis and David Bowie, I had my answer.” (p.272)
That’s proof enough for me.
“Baking Memory #185” is a beautiful poem in which Klecko relates Tempe Debe’s story of meeting JFK in Duluth, eight weeks before his assassination. Tempe Debe was 24 years old then, a Native American woman working in downtown Duluth, and in their brief interaction, JFK made her feel heard.
“He told Tempe...
After she graduated college
He’d find a place for her
We need people like you
Then he left, as he crossed the street
He turned around and waved goodbye” (p.291)
Even if you think you don’t like poetry, you need to read A Bakeable Feast, there will be something in it that will grab you and touch your heart.
A Bakeable Feast is a collection of 211 poems and taken together they offer insightful glimpses into humanity. Klecko’s poems are sometimes sweet, sometimes crusty, but they are always bursting with the flavor of real life. It’s hard to pick out specific lines I like from Klecko’s poems, because I just want you to read the whole poem.
Some of my favorite lines are in “Baking Memory #64”
“People are flawed—People are stupid
They disappoint
And seldom deserve trust
But if you stand outside an airport
When people send those they love away
It might be just enough to give you hope” (p.68)
There are many humorous moments through A Bakeable Feast. Klecko is Saint Paul, through and through, and every Saint Paulite will appreciate these lines:
“Because I was tired, Because I was lazy
Because I have money to burn
I stopped at Kowalski’s
Knowing they would allow me the pleasure
Of paying 40% more than their competitors” (p.138)
One of my favorite poems is “Baking Memory #131.” Klecko tells us about his attempts to work with young men who had recently gotten out of jail. They all ended up going back to prison. Klecko tells his wife that he has failed, and she offers him the wisdom:
“None of us has the power to grant healing
But we can offer moments worth remembering” (p.204)
Moments worth remembering, I love that. Marcel Proust would appreciate “Baking Memory #146,” Klecko’s ode to the madeleine. After Proust read Klecko’s poem, it would probably spur Proust to write another volume of his memoirs.
“Baking Memory #171” is another favorite of mine, as Klecko describes “The Quiet Man,” an owner of the bakery that Klecko didn’t always get along with at first. Over time, Klecko came to appreciate him.
“At times I thought he might be an angel
When I found out he shared a birthday
With Elvis and David Bowie, I had my answer.” (p.272)
That’s proof enough for me.
“Baking Memory #185” is a beautiful poem in which Klecko relates Tempe Debe’s story of meeting JFK in Duluth, eight weeks before his assassination. Tempe Debe was 24 years old then, a Native American woman working in downtown Duluth, and in their brief interaction, JFK made her feel heard.
“He told Tempe...
After she graduated college
He’d find a place for her
We need people like you
Then he left, as he crossed the street
He turned around and waved goodbye” (p.291)
Even if you think you don’t like poetry, you need to read A Bakeable Feast, there will be something in it that will grab you and touch your heart.
January 22, 2024
A Bakeable Feast’s subtitle: Bread. Sex. Honor., sets a high bar for Klecko.
He nails it. And then some.
Klecko’s words catapult over, under and through. You’ll meet sinister creeps who ignore invoices. Boy Zoro, who’s promising baking pedigree is set aside inexplicably to ring up booze at Kowalski’s; and baking royalty, Marlene Johnson.
Klecko writes like he talks. Fast, concise, with huge splashes of color. A Bakeable Feast is a good talk with a smart funny friend.
Thank you, Klecko.
He nails it. And then some.
Klecko’s words catapult over, under and through. You’ll meet sinister creeps who ignore invoices. Boy Zoro, who’s promising baking pedigree is set aside inexplicably to ring up booze at Kowalski’s; and baking royalty, Marlene Johnson.
Klecko writes like he talks. Fast, concise, with huge splashes of color. A Bakeable Feast is a good talk with a smart funny friend.
Thank you, Klecko.
January 3, 2025
Like if Charles Bukowski was a baker …
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews