Forget Reading

by Anthony Hawley

Poetry. FORGET READING is Anthony Hawley's second collection for Shearsman Books. "As in THE CONCERTO FORM, FORGET READING testifies to Anthony Hawley's perfect vocalic pitch, the ability few poets have to find precisely the right 'note'--whether syllable, word, or echoing phrase--to give his densely woven and arresting imagery a true electric charge. 'Shampoo too,' reads one of the 'P(r)etty Sonnets,' 'measures how clean the sentence is.' Yes, and who else could get so much mileage ('specimen rays') from rhyming 'maybe' with 'garbage'? These are lyrics, not to read but to reread--and with the intensest pleasure"--Marjorie Perloff.

Genres: Poetry

100 pages, Paperback

First published January 15, 2008

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

These poems had a riveting, lyrical flow; like Hazel from Cannery Row, at times I became too caught up in the words themselves to pay attention to their meaning. When I did try to extract meaning from them, however, I found myself dazed and confused. These poems sound interesting and pretty but are dense, convoluted, and difficult to follow. Maybe they'd make more sense if I kept re-reading them, but I'd prefer to stick to writing that's more grounded.

[Paul Klinger · Rating 2 out of 5]

Evidence of excessive consistency, aka the project syndrome. 4 or 5 chaps a book does not make. I liked "Afield" but this book never seemed to get up. Perloff's on the cover = 2 legit 2 quit.