In Search of Midnight: The Mike McGee Handbook of Awesome

by Mike McGee

Enter the realm of "Mighty" Mike McGee, a spoken word virtuoso and the poetic maverick of the slam stage, as he welcomes you into a world both distinct and unparalleled. Within the pages of his remarkable debut collection, you'll uncover a treasury of his most acclaimed performance pieces, captivating narratives, clever anecdotes, and insightful guidelines that offer a glimpse into the art of his craft. From deeply earnest love tributes to whimsical and requested compositions, this collection encapsulates the brilliance that defines McGee's artistic range. With the spirit of a seasoned traveler, he encapsulates his journey through both words and the lens of a camera, weaving together a narrative that leaves behind an indelible trail of extraordinary moments etched into memory.

Genres: Poetry

142 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 5, 2009

About the author

In 1999, McGee helped form Bleeding Edge Spoken Word, under the directorship of his then-roommate. Over two and a half years, the two released 33 compilations of contemporary American spoken word. Although the label is now defunct, McGee started his own imprints – 3XMsound and 3XMpress, in 2001 – in order to produce and release his own CDs and chapbooks.
In 2001, after three years of competing at the San José Poetry Slam, McGee earned a spot on the slam team and went to his first National Poetry Slam held that August in Seattle, Washington. He then returned to the National Poetry Slam with the same team in 2003 and 2004.
In 2003, McGee co-founded the Vancouver, B.C.-based "talk-rock" trio Tons of Fun University with Shane Koyczan and C. R. Avery. Their debut was before a crowd of 15,000 at the Vancouver Folk Music Festival, July 2004. The trio has since toured extensively throughout Canada, performing primarily in music festivals.
In 2005, McGee performed a revised version of his popular poem "Like" on a fifth season episode of Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry on HBO.

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Luminous and ripe with resistant humor - Mike McGee is like a flash of sartorial lighting that lets you see past the clouds of doubt you have on your horizon - letting you see the true markings of your life landscape. Met him at a poetry reading he gave - hell of a nice guy!

[Eric Shaffer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mike McGee is a wonder from his heart to his head, from big, round belly to his articulate and particular poetic tongue. The man puts the word "poet" in poetry. If you want to enjoy some lines, read the work of McGee aloud. I'm sure that's how he does it. I highly recommend this book. Thanks for Sterling Higa for passing these pages my way.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Litkit 2016:

This book was absolutely gorgeous and I spent a whole lot of time taking screenshots of the poems I love best and sending them to my best friend. I will definitely be reading more of Mike's works in the future.

[Rusty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who better to teach awesomeness than the great one himself?

[Conor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Other books out from same publisher that I'd recommend are Buddy Wakefield's Gentleman Practice and Michael Robert's No More Poems about the Moon.

[Ronnie Stephens · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mike McGee makes poetry fun again. It's impossible not to feel good about life with this book in your hands. McGee will make you laugh harder than you thought you could, but my favorite thing about his poems is their ability to make me feel good about being human. McGee carves a niche for himself with In Search for Midnight, his first full-length collection. As hard as it is to believe, McGee found a way to channel his larger-than-life stage presence into his written work - it literally jumps off the page and begs to be read aloud. Personal favorites include Mycrophone, Dirty Dimes and Dear Neil Armstrong.

One of the coolest things about this book is its refusal to cater to traditional structure. Poems are interspersed with advice on being awesome, making this the perfect handbook for poets and geeks alike.

[Ada · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heartfelt and honest book of poetry that was an absolute delight to read. Every poem was either hilarious or oh so poignant, but often times both. As I was reading, I was constantly reminded of my own experiences, or dead friends in my life. This book is an experience that I would recommend to anyone! (Provided they didn’t mind the sexual references and swear words. I thought they were done in good taste, and fit the ‘honesty’ aspect of the book, but I know that doesn’t go for everyone)

[behsforensics]

Cutting is for Dirty Dimes
By Mike McGee

[Tracy Towley · Rating 3 out of 5]

"It's one thing to say that I'm worthy of love

it's another thing to say that I'm worthy of my own"

In Search of Midnight made its way on my radar thanks to LitKit and their fantastic boxes. Though I have a few favorite poets and favorite poems, poetry is not something I seek out so I was excited to be introduced to a new poet.

First of all, this book feels amazing in my hand. It has this cover that's like, I don't know, rubberized or something? It's definitely not actually rubber but it has a texture that's incredibly satisfying. Graphics and font and colors and everything are amazing, so good job to the book designer.

As to the poems. I think the same thing is true of this book as is true for most poetry collections I've read: I really liked a few of the poems and the rest I didn't care much about. The ones I loved, I loved. The ones I didn't were fine. At no point did I roll my eyes and wish the book would hurry up and be over.

"I will gladly

take on your ocean

just to swim beneath you

so I can kiss the bends of your knees

in appreciation for the work they do

keeping your head above water"

That may not sound like incredible praise for a book but these are very personal poems and I think it would be challenging to find a reader who identified with all of them. Or maybe not, but either way I'm not that reader.

[Des Salvatore · Rating 5 out of 5]

This isn't exactly a poetry book. Some entries are prose and lists and other fun things. It is always poetic in the way he is romantic about everything; women, life, food, and happiness. It's so happy and amusing. A book that should exist.

I rated every entry in this book individually and nothing has a rating below a 3/5. There are numerous 5/5s. I would encourage any to check out his performance of "Like" on YouTube. (A version of it is published in this book.)