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Two Beat Newbie
A New Beat Newbie number twobie? Ooby dooby! Yes indeedy, we’re back in the slams of British wry wit verse jams. A lyrical, satirical, unequalled sequel with words like hot treacle. A call to be peaceful. Set to the beats, y’all. Find poems and prose full of politics, lunatics, rhythmic kicks, digital ticks, hedonistic highs and desperate fights, alongside conspiracy facts, plastic bags and modern age mockery, mixed with spoonfuls of sage-full top-notchery. Phew! Stop by, do. Don’t be averse. Sample some unique new wonders of wicked Whitewolf verse!
Including: Postman Pot, Bilderbergers And Fries, 100 Channels Of Crap, Gimme Medication, The Newtopia Newbies, Dig It All Digital, F*** You GCHQ, Tridentity, Yawn Porn, and the rollicking ride of Right On Brighton.
So come on, don’t be loopy- read Two Beat Newbie!
Including: Postman Pot, Bilderbergers And Fries, 100 Channels Of Crap, Gimme Medication, The Newtopia Newbies, Dig It All Digital, F*** You GCHQ, Tridentity, Yawn Porn, and the rollicking ride of Right On Brighton.
So come on, don’t be loopy- read Two Beat Newbie!
- GenresPoetry
141 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 1, 2016
About the author
Harry Whitewolf
25 books283 followersHarry Whitewolf is doing his own thing.
He's the author of two true backpacking tales: Route Number 11 (about Harry's five-month drunken journey around Argentina; and across the borders to Paraguay, Chile and Brazil) and The Road To Purification (which describes his mad-as-hell pot-smoking trip around Egypt). In addition, Harry has written ten collections of distinctive poetry, including the much talked about New Beat Newbie, and the award-winning Rhyme and Rebellion.
Whitewolf also co-edited and contributed to The Anti-Austerity Anthology, a book for charity which has been featured in The Canary and on the Steve Topple and George Galloway online show.
Over the years, Harry has performed his poetry at the Portobello Festival, the Winchester literature fringe festival and numerous open mic. nights and gigs. These days however, he prefers making fun and quirky performance vids from the comfort of his smoky flat. You can find Harry's performances on his website: www.harrywhitewolf.com
He also writes and illustrates funny children's books, that grown-ups can enjoy too, under the pen name of Mr. Wolf. Check out Mr. Wolf's books and cartoon illustrations on his website: www.booksforchildren.wix.com/mrwolf
As if that weren't enough to be getting on with, Harry's poetry has appeared in four other anthologies and you can find his wacky fiction in the unique books ReejecttIIon - a number two and They're Making It Up As They Go Along, which Harry co-authored with Daniel Clausen. Whitewolf also wrote the foreword for punk-poet Andy Carrington's kick-arse book What's Wrong With The Street!
Amongst all of that, Harry somehow finds time for his day job as an article writer and illustrator.
Harry Whitewolf was born in England in 1976. He hopes to see world peace in his lifetime, and yes, Harry believes miracles are possible.
Spread the love.
He's the author of two true backpacking tales: Route Number 11 (about Harry's five-month drunken journey around Argentina; and across the borders to Paraguay, Chile and Brazil) and The Road To Purification (which describes his mad-as-hell pot-smoking trip around Egypt). In addition, Harry has written ten collections of distinctive poetry, including the much talked about New Beat Newbie, and the award-winning Rhyme and Rebellion.
Whitewolf also co-edited and contributed to The Anti-Austerity Anthology, a book for charity which has been featured in The Canary and on the Steve Topple and George Galloway online show.
Over the years, Harry has performed his poetry at the Portobello Festival, the Winchester literature fringe festival and numerous open mic. nights and gigs. These days however, he prefers making fun and quirky performance vids from the comfort of his smoky flat. You can find Harry's performances on his website: www.harrywhitewolf.com
He also writes and illustrates funny children's books, that grown-ups can enjoy too, under the pen name of Mr. Wolf. Check out Mr. Wolf's books and cartoon illustrations on his website: www.booksforchildren.wix.com/mrwolf
As if that weren't enough to be getting on with, Harry's poetry has appeared in four other anthologies and you can find his wacky fiction in the unique books ReejecttIIon - a number two and They're Making It Up As They Go Along, which Harry co-authored with Daniel Clausen. Whitewolf also wrote the foreword for punk-poet Andy Carrington's kick-arse book What's Wrong With The Street!
Amongst all of that, Harry somehow finds time for his day job as an article writer and illustrator.
Harry Whitewolf was born in England in 1976. He hopes to see world peace in his lifetime, and yes, Harry believes miracles are possible.
Spread the love.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
October 12, 2016
Good to get another collection from Harry Whitewolf. He styles himself as a Beat poet but is actually something unique in his own right, writing repetitive, rhythmic, barbed and highly political poems that fall, every now and then, into unexpected humour or tenderness. He has also ventured into travel writing, and is a talented illustrator and cartoonist. Two Beat Newbie, however, is purely poetry. It’s his third such collection, after New Beat Newbie and Propaganda Monkeys, both published in 2015. The former contained recent poems, while the latter was a compilation of much older work. Both were memorable. So is this.
As with any collection, which poems one likes is a very personal thing. I find Whitewolf best when he attacks the hypocrisies of modern life. I really liked A Bag Is For Life, Not Just For Christmas:
I bet you feel so good and eco-wise,
When you go to the supermarket,
Carrying your Bag For Life.
...Let’s see, first we have Plastic wrapped salad chives.
What else? Plenty
Of other veg,
All wrapped in plastic.
Need some bread,
Wrapped in plastic.
Pick some HP Sauce, In a plastic bottle.
Another piece, Gimme Medication, is a clever satire on the way we are, quite legally, doped up to our eyeballs. The Six o’Clock News is a wonderful list of trivia – Hollywood gossip, footage of kittens, an item on whether it’s OK to pee in swimming pools, and finally: “And World War III ‘could be over by next year’ says US official”. There’s plenty more in the same vein (100 Channels of Crap, for example) and it’s very good. Some of it is clearly deeply felt; a poem called Short and Long Division:
Me and my neighbour hated each other.
Our street hated the next street, so me and my
neighbour would then stick together.
...Our country hated another country, so our counties would then stick together.
If there’s anything missing from this collection, it’s the personal note that you find in Whitewolf’s Propaganda Monkeys, which has his oldest poems. Pretty much everything in Two Beat Newbie is political. The one big exception is Right On Brighton, a paean of praise to the raffish and vibrant city on England’s south coast where he lived on graduation. The rest is dissent (including a couple of pieces that seem to support conspiracy theories).
Still, Whitewolf does dissent pretty well. He is an interesting and often gripping poet, someone whose thought processes are original and his own. And he has a knack for picking up on the frustrations and stupidities of contemporary life that we all feel but do not articulate. He articulates them. This for example is from a longish piece called Joy of the Modern World:
We’re sorry, but you are unable to withdraw
funds at this time. We’re sorry, but we are unable to process your
request at this time.
... You have one more attempt.
Restart browser.
Forgotten password.
What is your mother’s maiden name?
What’s the name of your first pet?
Anyone who has ever felt like lobbing their laptop or their phone at the wall in frustration will love this. I hope Harry Whitewolf keeps up his relentless attack on the crassness of TV, the hypocrisy of retail madness, the vapidity of social media and more, because we need him.
As with any collection, which poems one likes is a very personal thing. I find Whitewolf best when he attacks the hypocrisies of modern life. I really liked A Bag Is For Life, Not Just For Christmas:
I bet you feel so good and eco-wise,
When you go to the supermarket,
Carrying your Bag For Life.
...Let’s see, first we have Plastic wrapped salad chives.
What else? Plenty
Of other veg,
All wrapped in plastic.
Need some bread,
Wrapped in plastic.
Pick some HP Sauce, In a plastic bottle.
Another piece, Gimme Medication, is a clever satire on the way we are, quite legally, doped up to our eyeballs. The Six o’Clock News is a wonderful list of trivia – Hollywood gossip, footage of kittens, an item on whether it’s OK to pee in swimming pools, and finally: “And World War III ‘could be over by next year’ says US official”. There’s plenty more in the same vein (100 Channels of Crap, for example) and it’s very good. Some of it is clearly deeply felt; a poem called Short and Long Division:
Me and my neighbour hated each other.
Our street hated the next street, so me and my
neighbour would then stick together.
...Our country hated another country, so our counties would then stick together.
If there’s anything missing from this collection, it’s the personal note that you find in Whitewolf’s Propaganda Monkeys, which has his oldest poems. Pretty much everything in Two Beat Newbie is political. The one big exception is Right On Brighton, a paean of praise to the raffish and vibrant city on England’s south coast where he lived on graduation. The rest is dissent (including a couple of pieces that seem to support conspiracy theories).
Still, Whitewolf does dissent pretty well. He is an interesting and often gripping poet, someone whose thought processes are original and his own. And he has a knack for picking up on the frustrations and stupidities of contemporary life that we all feel but do not articulate. He articulates them. This for example is from a longish piece called Joy of the Modern World:
We’re sorry, but you are unable to withdraw
funds at this time. We’re sorry, but we are unable to process your
request at this time.
... You have one more attempt.
Restart browser.
Forgotten password.
What is your mother’s maiden name?
What’s the name of your first pet?
Anyone who has ever felt like lobbing their laptop or their phone at the wall in frustration will love this. I hope Harry Whitewolf keeps up his relentless attack on the crassness of TV, the hypocrisy of retail madness, the vapidity of social media and more, because we need him.
July 4, 2016
As a first-time reader to Harry Whitewolf’s work, I didn’t have any pre-conceptions or expectations. I had an inkling (from his bio) that he isn’t your typical Shakespeare-esque poet; he likes to have a laugh and muck about with words (not bore the reader to fucking death, obsessing over perfect rhyme/stanzas; writing about the birds/bees; blah, blah, blah…)
He’s angry; witty. Relevant. This I like.
In TWO BEAT NEWBIE he depicts day-to-day experiences with a wider, socio-political edge. A lot of the time he doesn’t take himself too seriously: he revels in being satirical, self-defeatist and very much up-to-date and on point with his own views thrown into the mix.
From re-useable supermarket bags (‘A BAG IS FOR LIFE’) and everything to do with porn (‘YAWN PORN’), the subjects are modern with Whitewolf seemingly gritting his teeth and chewing away at his words as he types.
‘PRIDE OF THE BRITISH LIONS’ is great, defining everything the British love about foreign food and holidays; while at the same time satirizing the hypocritical, scaremongering moans of the far-right (BNP/UKIP/wanker) types:
“’But we don’t want these ‘ere foreigner types.
We’re proud to be British. All white. All right?’
(What shite.)”
Whitewolf also tackles the on-going waffle of the media (‘THE SIX O’ CLOCK NEWS’/’NEWSPEAK, DOUBLESPEAK, PROPAGANDA NOWSPEAK’) and an age where everything has gone digital (‘DIG IT ALL DIGITAL’). He’s at his best and most natural in the stream-of-consciousness, going off on one a lot of the time (with self-confessed drug influences) while debating about things that need to be talked about/acted upon:
“Decriminalise drugs,
And aid all those addicts
Who are sick; not criminal thugs.”)
A lot of the time it might seem like his having a conversation with himself, but if you’ve got a spare hour or so, give Harry’s stuff a read. Whether trying to get through to you or talk at you, the poet is always hungry and on point; and TWO BEAT NEWBIE is a shot from the dark for anyone who’s pissed-off/fed up/hysterically in disbelief with the everyday pressures of 21st century Britain.
He’s angry; witty. Relevant. This I like.
In TWO BEAT NEWBIE he depicts day-to-day experiences with a wider, socio-political edge. A lot of the time he doesn’t take himself too seriously: he revels in being satirical, self-defeatist and very much up-to-date and on point with his own views thrown into the mix.
From re-useable supermarket bags (‘A BAG IS FOR LIFE’) and everything to do with porn (‘YAWN PORN’), the subjects are modern with Whitewolf seemingly gritting his teeth and chewing away at his words as he types.
‘PRIDE OF THE BRITISH LIONS’ is great, defining everything the British love about foreign food and holidays; while at the same time satirizing the hypocritical, scaremongering moans of the far-right (BNP/UKIP/wanker) types:
“’But we don’t want these ‘ere foreigner types.
We’re proud to be British. All white. All right?’
(What shite.)”
Whitewolf also tackles the on-going waffle of the media (‘THE SIX O’ CLOCK NEWS’/’NEWSPEAK, DOUBLESPEAK, PROPAGANDA NOWSPEAK’) and an age where everything has gone digital (‘DIG IT ALL DIGITAL’). He’s at his best and most natural in the stream-of-consciousness, going off on one a lot of the time (with self-confessed drug influences) while debating about things that need to be talked about/acted upon:
“Decriminalise drugs,
And aid all those addicts
Who are sick; not criminal thugs.”)
A lot of the time it might seem like his having a conversation with himself, but if you’ve got a spare hour or so, give Harry’s stuff a read. Whether trying to get through to you or talk at you, the poet is always hungry and on point; and TWO BEAT NEWBIE is a shot from the dark for anyone who’s pissed-off/fed up/hysterically in disbelief with the everyday pressures of 21st century Britain.
February 12, 2016
How many times can you say the sequel is better than the original?
Well this one is - better than New Beat Newbie which I also gave 5 stars.
Each poem short and easily digestible and instantly relatable - each one felt like it either contained a heartfelt humanitarian message or else an admission of personal suffering and of enduring the human condition. But always, every word of every page felt honest and as close as a poet could be to egoless.
Also loved the Whitewolf's "don't give a flying fuck" attitude (which he always had but now has taken it to the extreme) and reading his apparently uncensored emotions in this brilliant volume felt like I'd crawled into this poet's head to observe his thoughts live as they occur.
Bravo Lord Whitewolf!
Well this one is - better than New Beat Newbie which I also gave 5 stars.
Each poem short and easily digestible and instantly relatable - each one felt like it either contained a heartfelt humanitarian message or else an admission of personal suffering and of enduring the human condition. But always, every word of every page felt honest and as close as a poet could be to egoless.
Also loved the Whitewolf's "don't give a flying fuck" attitude (which he always had but now has taken it to the extreme) and reading his apparently uncensored emotions in this brilliant volume felt like I'd crawled into this poet's head to observe his thoughts live as they occur.
Bravo Lord Whitewolf!
October 26, 2020
You can watch some of my accompanying poetry performances for Two Beat Newbie in these vids:
• The Bitter Jug And The Jitterbug: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9742...
• Online Comments: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9779...
• Yawn Porn: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9797...
• The Rhubarb Tree: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9821...
• Bilderbergers and Fries: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9846...
• Gimme Medication: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9863...
• Desperation Zoo: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9922...
• The Newtopia Newbies: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9996...
Many thanks!
• The Bitter Jug And The Jitterbug: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9742...
• Online Comments: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9779...
• Yawn Porn: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9797...
• The Rhubarb Tree: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9821...
• Bilderbergers and Fries: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9846...
• Gimme Medication: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9863...
• Desperation Zoo: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9922...
• The Newtopia Newbies: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9996...
Many thanks!
February 13, 2016
It’s dark and raining outside and I sit down to write this review. Hmm. For some time now I’ve been a fan of this poet’s poems. I could say I’m not a poetry person to try and hook those, like me, into giving this collection a shot even though they are not poetry people persons either. It’s only true somedays. Today, this collection speaks to me in a voice so familiar it’s barely a hair’s breadth away. The succinct and direct quality is beyond something I’m capable of, and something to be cherished in a world of obfuscation, where smoke and mirrors, cheap tricks and artful dodges satisfy for a while, but in time reveal themselves for the wolf in sheep’s clothing that they are. There is a generational acknowledgement that should be addressed, with references that are so synonymous with the cultural pointers of formative years that there is bound to be a gravitational empathetic nod, whatever the surrounding content. Happily, the lyrical playfulness that characterised earlier work, New Beat Newbie especially, is still intact, but this time built upon with a deeper undercurrent that wells up and asks a question of anyone who reads this. There is something imploring and broken, but exalting and, that word again, compassionate, that shines through in these easily accessible rhymes. And I mustn’t forget funny! There’s loads of funny too.
By being our mirror Whitewolf, only by invitation, enables the reader to reassess some of the things we’ve told ourselves, the agendas we’ve picked up, the causes or art of living maxims, the bad and good habits, what we crave and where we’ve been. From his shady cave (if you don’t believe me just see the online videos) he speaks out what’s on his mind and it rolls and we can take some time for reflection, recollection, connection, …tion, and …tion. For a while the syncopated cadence infiltrates the reader’s headspace and, though offbeat, it’s sure footed.
This strikes me as Whitewolf’s strongest collection yet, as these rhymes demonstrate a dynamic shuffling of ideas and a succinct projection of all that he does best. I hope that the collection finds many more readers who will consider the final question posed at the end of it.
I read this in paperback form and must comment that it is a lovely book.
By being our mirror Whitewolf, only by invitation, enables the reader to reassess some of the things we’ve told ourselves, the agendas we’ve picked up, the causes or art of living maxims, the bad and good habits, what we crave and where we’ve been. From his shady cave (if you don’t believe me just see the online videos) he speaks out what’s on his mind and it rolls and we can take some time for reflection, recollection, connection, …tion, and …tion. For a while the syncopated cadence infiltrates the reader’s headspace and, though offbeat, it’s sure footed.
This strikes me as Whitewolf’s strongest collection yet, as these rhymes demonstrate a dynamic shuffling of ideas and a succinct projection of all that he does best. I hope that the collection finds many more readers who will consider the final question posed at the end of it.
I read this in paperback form and must comment that it is a lovely book.
June 16, 2020
Harry Whitewolf is a man angry at the world and you can feel that on every page. So much of this poetry is disjointed and fragmentary but that perfectly demonstrates the poet’s feeling of disconnection from what he views as the real world by a wall of frothy pop social media and social injustice.
For me, though, the thing I love most about his work is the rhythms and the beat. It’s freestyle jazz played with words. Ideally, these poems should be performed in a dark, smoky jazz club with a lone drummer for accompaniment, dig?
The Bitter Jug and the Jitterbug
Why do you drink from the damn bitter jug?
Stop being smug;
Being a mug,
A stupid damn thug,
On some goddamn drug.
Jitter in flitters with the jitterbug bug.
The bitter jug jitterbug jamming the glug
Of the liquid white light that’s kept in the jug.
Jig and jam like Jagger and Jim.
Empty the jugs of drugged up sin.
Be the outsider that’s locked up within.
Be loud and wide and shake your damn thing.
Swing it with Sammy. Dazzle like Dean.
Flashes of jazz‘ll know what I mean.
So swagger in jaded jazz daggers,
Rock ‘n’ roll it through all your last staggers.
Do the twisted mashed potato.
Wish to be jazzed up Plato.
Get down in the ghetto. Get high up on truth.
Come on, let’s let go and roll up with the
smooth.
Groove it and grind it and grab it as well.
Choose jitterbug beats to complete the big swell.
Bitter jug babies are brewing within.
Jitterbug gravy is stirring a din.
Bitter jug jitterbug bugs are bamboozled.
Jitterbug bitter jug jugs are damn googled.
Think you’ve got a biter? Well, reel in the line,
To draw back in another damn random rhyme,
Talking ‘bout our jittery g-g-generation.
Come on you cool kooks, it’s the new
celebration,
Not of X or Y or other brand estimations,
But the new, true, let’s-have-a-hoot generation!
So, jig up a jam and do the damn jitterbug.
And forget the damn taste of the damn bitter
jug.
Jig it and jam it like Jimi or Jim
Jitterbug jazz it with Janis Joplin.
Jolt it and jig it and jut out the jams.
Jitterbug boogie with poetry slams.
Jam it and jerk it in generous jitters.
Scam it and ham it in hen party pittas.
Pluck it and fuck it. Jazz up the jam.
Choose jitterbug boogies just ‘cos you can.
For me, though, the thing I love most about his work is the rhythms and the beat. It’s freestyle jazz played with words. Ideally, these poems should be performed in a dark, smoky jazz club with a lone drummer for accompaniment, dig?
The Bitter Jug and the Jitterbug
Why do you drink from the damn bitter jug?
Stop being smug;
Being a mug,
A stupid damn thug,
On some goddamn drug.
Jitter in flitters with the jitterbug bug.
The bitter jug jitterbug jamming the glug
Of the liquid white light that’s kept in the jug.
Jig and jam like Jagger and Jim.
Empty the jugs of drugged up sin.
Be the outsider that’s locked up within.
Be loud and wide and shake your damn thing.
Swing it with Sammy. Dazzle like Dean.
Flashes of jazz‘ll know what I mean.
So swagger in jaded jazz daggers,
Rock ‘n’ roll it through all your last staggers.
Do the twisted mashed potato.
Wish to be jazzed up Plato.
Get down in the ghetto. Get high up on truth.
Come on, let’s let go and roll up with the
smooth.
Groove it and grind it and grab it as well.
Choose jitterbug beats to complete the big swell.
Bitter jug babies are brewing within.
Jitterbug gravy is stirring a din.
Bitter jug jitterbug bugs are bamboozled.
Jitterbug bitter jug jugs are damn googled.
Think you’ve got a biter? Well, reel in the line,
To draw back in another damn random rhyme,
Talking ‘bout our jittery g-g-generation.
Come on you cool kooks, it’s the new
celebration,
Not of X or Y or other brand estimations,
But the new, true, let’s-have-a-hoot generation!
So, jig up a jam and do the damn jitterbug.
And forget the damn taste of the damn bitter
jug.
Jig it and jam it like Jimi or Jim
Jitterbug jazz it with Janis Joplin.
Jolt it and jig it and jut out the jams.
Jitterbug boogie with poetry slams.
Jam it and jerk it in generous jitters.
Scam it and ham it in hen party pittas.
Pluck it and fuck it. Jazz up the jam.
Choose jitterbug boogies just ‘cos you can.
March 8, 2016
These poems were written by a wordplay genius, a rhyming master and an all round top fella. Every one of these poems spoke to me in so many different ways. For this reason I'm glad to have invested in the paperback because, like the prequel New Beat Newbie, I intend to read these poems over and over and over until I eventually know them off by heart.
Whenever I come across individuals who are using their craft to mouth off -no matter how subtle- my ears pick up because I tend to find that not many people cross that line. I suppose this is why punk rock struck a chord with me way back in my mid-teens. I suppose this is also why I found myself nodding my head to George Orwell novels, Akala albums and Bill Hicks stand-up shows. Each one of them were saying things that reinforced how I feel about this crazy world and without a counterproductive defeatist attitude.
Whitewolf is one of a few artists who falls into this tiny category of kindred spirits. They all give me hope in a world that can sometimes feel like a lonely place for dissidents. And the key thing is that this collection is *full* of hope; full of empathy and full of one of the most unique and enjoyable styles I've come across since being turned on to poetry.
Stand outs for me were Right On Brighton and Joy of the Modern World. But these are gold nuggets in a massive bag filled with gold nuggets. There isn't a chocolate coin among them.
I hope in the years to come more people discover Whitewolf because it's people like him who capture something about these times in unique, pure and everlasting ways.
This book is actually six stars because it gets an extra star for referencing black sheep.
"I want to help change the world for the better.
Why don't you?"
- Harry Whitewolf
Whenever I come across individuals who are using their craft to mouth off -no matter how subtle- my ears pick up because I tend to find that not many people cross that line. I suppose this is why punk rock struck a chord with me way back in my mid-teens. I suppose this is also why I found myself nodding my head to George Orwell novels, Akala albums and Bill Hicks stand-up shows. Each one of them were saying things that reinforced how I feel about this crazy world and without a counterproductive defeatist attitude.
Whitewolf is one of a few artists who falls into this tiny category of kindred spirits. They all give me hope in a world that can sometimes feel like a lonely place for dissidents. And the key thing is that this collection is *full* of hope; full of empathy and full of one of the most unique and enjoyable styles I've come across since being turned on to poetry.
Stand outs for me were Right On Brighton and Joy of the Modern World. But these are gold nuggets in a massive bag filled with gold nuggets. There isn't a chocolate coin among them.
I hope in the years to come more people discover Whitewolf because it's people like him who capture something about these times in unique, pure and everlasting ways.
This book is actually six stars because it gets an extra star for referencing black sheep.
"I want to help change the world for the better.
Why don't you?"
- Harry Whitewolf
February 4, 2016
Whitewolf's poetry reads to me like song lyrics, like silent anthems for a non-existent collection of disconnected people. They range from political rants to humorous everyday observations to wistfully autobiographical factoids and more.
In a sense you've thought everything you'll ever read in the poems-- such is often the case with the best artists-- though you've never seen your thoughts this lyrical, this open, aching or humorous. If you want to shy away from them because you find them too sincere (interesting, that!), do read on and listen (yes, listen: read them aloud: they're already in your voice!) to how they plead with you and the world for returns to basic kindness in every possible form.
Reach out, read and support this mad, sad. joyous, lonely, confused, compassionate and playful friend of yours, waiting for you to chime in with his anthems :)
In a sense you've thought everything you'll ever read in the poems-- such is often the case with the best artists-- though you've never seen your thoughts this lyrical, this open, aching or humorous. If you want to shy away from them because you find them too sincere (interesting, that!), do read on and listen (yes, listen: read them aloud: they're already in your voice!) to how they plead with you and the world for returns to basic kindness in every possible form.
Reach out, read and support this mad, sad. joyous, lonely, confused, compassionate and playful friend of yours, waiting for you to chime in with his anthems :)
May 13, 2018
Absolutely fantastic. Total genius.
If you have not read any of Harry Whitewolfs books you are so missing out.
Very highly recommended. Would give ten stars if I could.
If you have not read any of Harry Whitewolfs books you are so missing out.
Very highly recommended. Would give ten stars if I could.
September 27, 2016
Harry's poetic voice doesn't dick around. It's brutal but playful, just the way i like my...well..anyway, This guy doesn't have time for Fakebook or 'Twatter' because he's busy searching...for himself, for answers, for intelligent life, for the others who are searching...and ways he can make the world a better place, do his part. Well, he's doing it. He's trying his best to wake us up from our rotten slumber. Two Beat Newbie never loses steam as each poem is as violently clever and devastatingly relevant as the last. He drags every uncomfortable truth by its balls and swings it into the light, then kicks the shit out of it until it's unavoidable. But really folks, if any of these poems or topics make you uncomfortable, you have a lot of research to do. And you're running out of time as the internet is about to be controlled and censored so you better get started. Like ............NOW. Put down Candy Crush, turn off The Walking Dead and for f*ck's sake, google something besides Adam Levine (gross) and young Asian girls. 'All the Presidents are Related' is a good place to start.
This collection is MUST READ for anyone who is on a journey or has a spark of interest in the truth. Harry's work , like the truth itself will certainly not appeal to the mass majority. It is not for the weak-minded. Not for followers. I love every poem in this book so hard to choose favorites but here goes: 'Conspiracies are crazy. Right?', 'Rude View', 'Digital Hustle' and the epic 'Joy of the Modern World'.
Two Beat Newbie is a sort of bible for the 'others' who are SICK TO DEATH of rolling around in the filthy mind control system, the government's unforgivable lies, consumerism eating us alive, celebrity sellouts filling our minds with nonsense, despicable puppets they call politicians. This world is in a narcissistic state of emergency where the most important thing you do all day is deciding which selfie to post. We'd better get our heads out of our asses and stand up for ourselves. I deeply, deeply respect Mr. Whitewolf's tough love for humanity, to be bold enough to stand up for it and expose what the masses are desperate to ignore.
We are living in a waking nightmare that we are helping to create.
This collection is MUST READ for anyone who is on a journey or has a spark of interest in the truth. Harry's work , like the truth itself will certainly not appeal to the mass majority. It is not for the weak-minded. Not for followers. I love every poem in this book so hard to choose favorites but here goes: 'Conspiracies are crazy. Right?', 'Rude View', 'Digital Hustle' and the epic 'Joy of the Modern World'.
Two Beat Newbie is a sort of bible for the 'others' who are SICK TO DEATH of rolling around in the filthy mind control system, the government's unforgivable lies, consumerism eating us alive, celebrity sellouts filling our minds with nonsense, despicable puppets they call politicians. This world is in a narcissistic state of emergency where the most important thing you do all day is deciding which selfie to post. We'd better get our heads out of our asses and stand up for ourselves. I deeply, deeply respect Mr. Whitewolf's tough love for humanity, to be bold enough to stand up for it and expose what the masses are desperate to ignore.
We are living in a waking nightmare that we are helping to create.
February 4, 2016
The Indie poet laureate is back with a new collection of poems and I'm a Newtopian Newbie. My lack of education in poetry makes it difficult to explain my feelings when reading poems, the best I can do is these make me wanna dance. Razzle Dazzle made me dance whilst making odd shapes with my hands, the bitter jug and the jitterbug made me want to... well do the jitterbug and many others made me want to jump up and down in a mosh-pit. In fact this poetry could easily start a mosh pit.
What's changed from his last book? Harry has spent a lot of time being inspired by the Internet, read this book and you'll realise just how much time you spent on it. The poems are longer and they ask many questions of you, especially "Survival", very hard hitting. My favourite right up til the end was 100 channels of crap (I have same thoughts every time I see the kids watching TV) but the best for me was "Right on Brighton" Harry has captured the place perfectly.
Fantastic collection and looking forward to re-reading and trying convert/tricking others into reading it.
What's changed from his last book? Harry has spent a lot of time being inspired by the Internet, read this book and you'll realise just how much time you spent on it. The poems are longer and they ask many questions of you, especially "Survival", very hard hitting. My favourite right up til the end was 100 channels of crap (I have same thoughts every time I see the kids watching TV) but the best for me was "Right on Brighton" Harry has captured the place perfectly.
Fantastic collection and looking forward to re-reading and trying convert/tricking others into reading it.
February 9, 2016
I hope this review isn’t redundant of the review I wrote for Harry Whitewolf’s previous book of poems, “New Beat Newbie” but Whitewolf has done it again in this new volume of poems “Two Beat Newbie”. His scintillating and playful use of words makes this volume an entertaining and at times thought provoking read.
Whitewolf certainly has the poet’s gift of using words in a playful manner and finding associations in the words and phrases that a reader might not have put together before.
Don’t worry if you’re one of those people that think poetry is inaccessible or dry and relies heavily on tired themes. Whitewolf turns his eye and pen (electrons?) towards the modern, the internet, politicians, and isolating ourselves ever more with ‘social’ media. Whitewolf also tackles bankers and those of the 1% that revel in disparity. I imagine “Two Beat Newbie” to be a book that’s read at an Occupy London protest or a “Howl” for the politically poetically inclined.
Whitewolf certainly has the poet’s gift of using words in a playful manner and finding associations in the words and phrases that a reader might not have put together before.
Don’t worry if you’re one of those people that think poetry is inaccessible or dry and relies heavily on tired themes. Whitewolf turns his eye and pen (electrons?) towards the modern, the internet, politicians, and isolating ourselves ever more with ‘social’ media. Whitewolf also tackles bankers and those of the 1% that revel in disparity. I imagine “Two Beat Newbie” to be a book that’s read at an Occupy London protest or a “Howl” for the politically poetically inclined.
October 26, 2020
You can watch some of my accompanying poetry performances for Two Beat Newbie in these vids:
• The Bitter Jug And The Jitterbug: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9742...
• Online Comments: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9779...
• Yawn Porn: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9797...
• The Rhubarb Tree: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9821...
• Bilderbergers and Fries: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9846...
• Gimme Medication: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9863...
• Desperation Zoo: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9922...
• The Newtopia Newbies: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9996...
Many thanks!
• The Bitter Jug And The Jitterbug: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9742...
• Online Comments: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9779...
• Yawn Porn: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9797...
• The Rhubarb Tree: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9821...
• Bilderbergers and Fries: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9846...
• Gimme Medication: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9863...
• Desperation Zoo: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9922...
• The Newtopia Newbies: https://www.goodreads.com/videos/9996...
Many thanks!
August 24, 2016
Pure and simple: Spectacular!!! A quick read and verified my opinion on the previous collection. Must get more of his works Damn it!!!
August 16, 2017
So this morning I'm going to update my Harry Whitewolf reading. I finished three of his offerings over the past couple of months and haven't posted anything yet because even though we've never met, I do consider Harry a friend and appreciate not only his writing efforts, but his enthusiasm for those around him whose efforts he also supports. Listen to his work and read it. Harry's is a voice that runs up against the slick, stylized media of today and the onslaught of corporate consumerism.
November 16, 2016
A sequel that is better than the original, if that is possible. He has honed his wordplay perfectly and produced an entertaining collection of observational poetry we can all relate to in our lives. Funny, fresh and definitely re-readable. Keep them coming, Harry!
March 17, 2016
Harry has an uncanny way of making you feel high when reading his work…I’m feeling high on poetry right now!
If New Beat Newbie was the appetizer, then why not just skip dinner and go straight to dessert with Two Beat Newbie?
Harry rolled up New Beat Newbie into a sweet hash joint and smoked it into Two Beat Newbie and partied all night in Brighton.
There was no taming Boom box Harry with brick bar love notes, smashing elitists’ heads…he was fantastically out of control in this one and it could probably be used to start a revolution! That is….if anyone could ever manage reading his poems out loud…. my dear neuropathways are all tangled up now, loved it!
Well done, Mr. Whitewolf
If New Beat Newbie was the appetizer, then why not just skip dinner and go straight to dessert with Two Beat Newbie?
Harry rolled up New Beat Newbie into a sweet hash joint and smoked it into Two Beat Newbie and partied all night in Brighton.
There was no taming Boom box Harry with brick bar love notes, smashing elitists’ heads…he was fantastically out of control in this one and it could probably be used to start a revolution! That is….if anyone could ever manage reading his poems out loud…. my dear neuropathways are all tangled up now, loved it!
Well done, Mr. Whitewolf
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