WHISH: Poems

by Jackie Craven

PRESS 53 AWARD FOR POETRY

WHISH ! The title suggests speed and longing. Alternating between surreal prose blocks and lyric verse, Jackie Craven imagines hours, minutes, and seconds as quirky human characters — secretaries, bookkeepers, and an array of scoundrels. Noon stalls in the center of Erie Boulevard, 5:15 paces hospital corridors, and a wistful narrator speeds along a “quantum highway” where memory and loss plume into stained glass light.

Poems in WHISH are adapted from work that originally appeared in AGNI, PLOUGHSHARES, NEW OHIO REVIEW, and other journals.

Genres: Poetry

74 pages, Paperback

Published April 13, 2024

About the author

Jackie Craven writes poetry and prose steeped in magical realism. She's the author of WHISH, winner of the Press 53 Award for Poetry. Other books include SECRET FORMULAS & TECHNIQUES OF THE MASTERS (Brick Road Poetry Press) and two chapbooks, CYBORG SISTER (Headmistress Press) and OUR LIVES BECAME UNMANAGEABLE (winner of the Omnidawn award for fabulist fiction). Her poems appear in literary journals such as AGNI, Alaska Quarterly Review, Beloit Poetry Review, The Massachusetts Review, New Ohio Review, Nimrod, Ploughshares, Pleiades, and Poet Lore. As a journalist, she's also published books on home décor and articles on architecture, visual art, literature, and cultural travel. Follow or Friend her on Facebook at WriterJackieCraven or sign up for her "Distant Dwellings" newsletter on Substack.

Reviews

[⋆｡‧˚ʚ Emma ɞ˚‧｡⋆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I read that this book was about “time personified” I was really excited to read it. However sadly it wasn’t a hit for me. There’s nothing objectively wrong with the writing it’s just not for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review!

[Clauds · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Press 53 for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars
Spoiler: imagine if 2am was a person. Or 7am.

This is one of the main concepts of the book, and I instantly knew I had to read it. I loved it and hated it at the same time. I have to put a warning that it can be rough for people who've recently lost someone dear, or people about to lose someone. It can be rough, and it brought out a lot of feelings for me.

I really enjoyed the personification of time and how the author looked at time like a person. This was a story about grief and how time can lead to moving on. Or not.

[Emi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Publishing date: 13.04.2024
Thank you to NetGalley and Press 53 for the ARC. My opinions are my own.

Fascinating. That's what I am left with after reading this. Oh, and also some emotions I am not sure how to process. This collection seems to have a few things going on for it:
The personification of time, especially specific timestamps (02:00, 07:30, etc.)
A running story about death and moving on
How time runs away from us

I think this collection might be a little rough for someone processing a recent death or in the process of end-of-life care for a loved one. Just be wary before reading this.

Favorite poems:
ON EVERY DESK, PAPERS TUMBLE IN PILES
DOESN'T LOVE HAVE AN EXPIRATION DATE?
I'M LEARNING TO BAKE CURSES
I ESCAPE TO CAPTIVA ISLAND
JUST FOR ONCE, I WANT TO WITNESS THE GOING AWAY

Final ranking and star rating?
4 stars, A tier. Stunning collection. I loved every minute of it. Now I need to process my emotions a little. Highly recommend.

[Kanwarpal Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I read that this book was about “time personified” I was really excited to read it. Where time slips between multiple rather surreal accounts of modern living. Poet speak of time is an imaginary construct, this collection establishes its uncertainty further into a work of something akin to an equally irregular narrative. Where absence presents the concept of time, a paradox just as evident as absence itself. It is more of escapism than reality and more of a prose's quote kind of poetry.

Sadly it didn't connect with me or I don't get the feeling of connection with these poems. There’s nothing objectively wrong with the writing it’s just maybe I am in a more enthusiastic mood and this book doesn't build enough tempo to hit my chord of melancholy.
.

[Gabriel Noel · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC given by NetGalley for Honest Review

"WHISH" imagines time personified in an eclectic collection of poetry and prose. I was somewhat intrigued by the concept but felt the execution was lackluster. My issue is that it felt drawn out halfway through the collection. Nevertheless, Craven's writing is lush and emotional, touching on topics such as grief and human connection. While this book is not my favorite, it's well written and well executed.

My favorite poems are: "Doesn't Love Have an Expiration Date", "Pi Huddles In A Cloakroom", and "My Misery Sleeps Through Sunrise."

[hope ₊⊹ · Rating 4 out of 5]

where time slips between multiple rather surreal accounts of modern living. just as time is an imaginary construct, this collection establishes it's uncertainty further into a work of something akin to an equally irregular narrative. where absence presents the concept of time, a paradox just as evident as absence itself. i definitely enjoyed reading this collection, and appreciate it very much to have been given the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.

[Catherine Pratt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was quite different and I liked it. Its a little.different but not quite sure how its different. Another thing I liked was reading the notes afterwards. Really interesting and I think you all will like it.

I received a free copy of the book and is voluntarily writing a review

[Iara Moure · Rating 1 out of 5]

Cuando leí que este libro trataba sobre "el tiempo personificado", me emocioné mucho por leerlo. Sin embargo, lamentablemente no fue para mí. No hay nada objetivamente malo en la escritura, simplemente no es lo mío.

[Seher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read and review this!

I honestly loved this! the poetry was very interesting and quite different to a lot of what I've been read nowadays.