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Propaganda Monkeys - Twenty Poems From My Twenties: 1996 - 2006
Propaganda Monkeys: Twenty Poems From My Twenties is a short collection of punch-packing poetic pieces bursting with youthful vision, confusion and yearning. Amongst its pages, you’ll discover: vivid political anger, reflections on love, scepticism towards the plugged-in Capitalist world, a little bit of no-nonsense nonsense, personal moments of coping with depression, a sprinkle of wry humour, and a contemporary dose of boundary pushing, beat pumping verse, from when author Harry Whitewolf was just a cub.
- GenresPoetry
Kindle Edition
First published August 27, 2015
72 people want to read
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 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 10, 2018
This short collection of poetry is often sad, sometimes funny, occasionally experimental, always intelligent and always deeply moving.
You could call this juvenilia, and some of the themes are those that abound in the minds of the young, but there's an intensity here that belies the author's tender years. (The poet's years were tender when he wrote these poems; he's an old git just like me now. At our age, we have other tender bits but let's not dwell on that!)
I loved this collection and I'm sure I'll return to it many times.
You could call this juvenilia, and some of the themes are those that abound in the minds of the young, but there's an intensity here that belies the author's tender years. (The poet's years were tender when he wrote these poems; he's an old git just like me now. At our age, we have other tender bits but let's not dwell on that!)
I loved this collection and I'm sure I'll return to it many times.
April 9, 2017
Reading this gem after 'Two Beat Newbie', 'Matrix Visions' and 'Rhyme and Rebellion', I am pleased to say that his style is consistent with the important things in life: fun, wit, humor, truth, mind-fuckery and middle fingers in the air to politics. We could use a few more middle fingers. But that would be weird so instead, we got Harry! Yay! I highly recommend this collection as I'm still reading and digesting it myself. My head is spinning from 'Fly-Dragon'. That really got me, idk why...Full review to come:)
June 5, 2016
I took to Harry Whitewolf’s poetry as soon as I read his collection New Beat Newbie last year. He’s what you might call a protest poet, except that the label seems trite. He uses short lines and phrases to build up poems with a rhythmic, insistent structure. The results stay in your mind, along with the message – which is usually a political comment or a sideways look at some weirdness of the modern world.
This collection of poems written in his 20s, between 1996 and 2006, shows him developing his technique. Thus BOGOF:
Buy one. Get one free.
Try one. Get done.
...Do the retailers make enough
When there's 70% off?
Of course they do, so that shows
How much fat cat profit grows.
Pretty clear where Whitewolf stands, eh. But this collection differs from his later stuff in that there is material that is less political and more personal. The Waiter is a case in point:
Sometimes I'm numb. I am the pauser.
The passer by.
I am the cause of
My life and I.
A glimpse of someone wondering about his purpose in life and whether he has one. Meanwhile Jigsaw Angel and another piece, Broken Wings, seem to hint at an affair or partnership that has gone badly wrong:
Jigsaw Angel,
I could take you to heaven,
But you seem to like it in hell.
I think my favourite piece in this collection is From Under the Growth, a short poem that sums up the writer’s feeling on seeing three deer appear. A plane passes overhead, and he imagines the hum of a motorway in the distance, but it doesn’t matter; the deer do, and the poem is oddly moving.
It’s this personal note that makes me like Propaganda Monkeys at least as much as Whitewolf’s newer collections. There is something affecting about this stuff. Whitewolf is quite private –although I’m acquainted with him online, I don’t know, and haven’t asked, his real name. All I know is that he’s round about 40, lives in England, probably in the south; holds left-wing views; and once travelled in Egypt and later South America to get over a break-up – he’s described both journeys in books. He’s also an amusing caricaturist. He has a wide frame of reference, citing influences as diverse as Milton, John Cooper Clarke and Baudelaire (another of his collections contains a short but elegant tribute to the last-named, Ragmen). But his style is very much of his own.
I don’t think Whitewolf’s poetry is for everyone. Some would baulk at his individual style or his very overt politics – and he doesn’t pull his punches on the latter; pieces like BOGOF are about as subtle as a knee in the groin. For me, though, it works. Howl on, Harry.
This collection of poems written in his 20s, between 1996 and 2006, shows him developing his technique. Thus BOGOF:
Buy one. Get one free.
Try one. Get done.
...Do the retailers make enough
When there's 70% off?
Of course they do, so that shows
How much fat cat profit grows.
Pretty clear where Whitewolf stands, eh. But this collection differs from his later stuff in that there is material that is less political and more personal. The Waiter is a case in point:
Sometimes I'm numb. I am the pauser.
The passer by.
I am the cause of
My life and I.
A glimpse of someone wondering about his purpose in life and whether he has one. Meanwhile Jigsaw Angel and another piece, Broken Wings, seem to hint at an affair or partnership that has gone badly wrong:
Jigsaw Angel,
I could take you to heaven,
But you seem to like it in hell.
I think my favourite piece in this collection is From Under the Growth, a short poem that sums up the writer’s feeling on seeing three deer appear. A plane passes overhead, and he imagines the hum of a motorway in the distance, but it doesn’t matter; the deer do, and the poem is oddly moving.
It’s this personal note that makes me like Propaganda Monkeys at least as much as Whitewolf’s newer collections. There is something affecting about this stuff. Whitewolf is quite private –although I’m acquainted with him online, I don’t know, and haven’t asked, his real name. All I know is that he’s round about 40, lives in England, probably in the south; holds left-wing views; and once travelled in Egypt and later South America to get over a break-up – he’s described both journeys in books. He’s also an amusing caricaturist. He has a wide frame of reference, citing influences as diverse as Milton, John Cooper Clarke and Baudelaire (another of his collections contains a short but elegant tribute to the last-named, Ragmen). But his style is very much of his own.
I don’t think Whitewolf’s poetry is for everyone. Some would baulk at his individual style or his very overt politics – and he doesn’t pull his punches on the latter; pieces like BOGOF are about as subtle as a knee in the groin. For me, though, it works. Howl on, Harry.
September 27, 2015
(The one and only) Whitewolf dedicates the book to "the ghosts of his past" and when reading this collection of easily digestible poems it does really seem as if the author/poet is attempting to bury the hatchet.
Having read Whitewolf's other books, the thought patterns in Propaganda Monkeys are not quite as sophisticated. But that's to be expected as the author was younger here and presumably in the earlier stages of his journey as a poet (not to mention as a person).
However, there's something nice here in the naivety of youth and this book captures that in spades. For example, in Jigsaw Angel there appears to be a subtle reference to a lost love, perhaps a first love lost: "Jigsaw Angel, I could take you to heaven, But you seem to like it in hell." And then later in the book we get a poem subtitled "Jigsaw Angel R.I.P. Rise" which appears (again, I'm attempting to read in between the lines here) to express the pain of letting someone go that we love.
There is also the usual Whitewolf humour throughout, including a poem in which he presents the agony/guilt we have all experienced of calling in to work sick when we just want to have the day off!
And finally, there is quite a bit of mockery and sarcasm towards the Establishment and the world's powerbrokers, as you'd kind of expect from a book titled Propaganda Monkeys.
Having read Whitewolf's other books, the thought patterns in Propaganda Monkeys are not quite as sophisticated. But that's to be expected as the author was younger here and presumably in the earlier stages of his journey as a poet (not to mention as a person).
However, there's something nice here in the naivety of youth and this book captures that in spades. For example, in Jigsaw Angel there appears to be a subtle reference to a lost love, perhaps a first love lost: "Jigsaw Angel, I could take you to heaven, But you seem to like it in hell." And then later in the book we get a poem subtitled "Jigsaw Angel R.I.P. Rise" which appears (again, I'm attempting to read in between the lines here) to express the pain of letting someone go that we love.
There is also the usual Whitewolf humour throughout, including a poem in which he presents the agony/guilt we have all experienced of calling in to work sick when we just want to have the day off!
And finally, there is quite a bit of mockery and sarcasm towards the Establishment and the world's powerbrokers, as you'd kind of expect from a book titled Propaganda Monkeys.
November 11, 2015
This short collection is direct and smattered with unreconstructed youth. This is stuff of yesterday and of the ages. There is a courage in sharing without camouflage, without dressing in complexity or obfuscation. Here Whitewolf makes clearly timed commentary on themes including frustration with authority, reflections on love, dark days and moods and the limitations of language itself.
It is tempting to breeze though this, the words deceptively undemanding at first, but they do weave and worm and I found myself halting and retreating, then returning to the top quite frequently, feeling like I’d missed something. Although there is a warmth here, as in all Whitewolf’s work, there is also a reserve to this collection, maybe a holding back. There is plenty of space to fill around the edges, with a nod and a wink, maybe a crooked smile, but always wolfy.
Really interesting collection, made more so by the incomplete feeling, a feeling that mirrors how fractured remembrances of more youthful times can be.
It is tempting to breeze though this, the words deceptively undemanding at first, but they do weave and worm and I found myself halting and retreating, then returning to the top quite frequently, feeling like I’d missed something. Although there is a warmth here, as in all Whitewolf’s work, there is also a reserve to this collection, maybe a holding back. There is plenty of space to fill around the edges, with a nod and a wink, maybe a crooked smile, but always wolfy.
Really interesting collection, made more so by the incomplete feeling, a feeling that mirrors how fractured remembrances of more youthful times can be.
June 19, 2019
Writing poetry has always been a bit beyond me. The best I can manage is a bit of prose that does not bleed the nose. (Actually, that last line made my nose bleed slightly.)
In the first poem, you will find MySpace, download junkies, skunk-smoking geezers, and an inflatable Jesus. 1996-2006, indeed! A MySpace reference. I’d love to go back there if it still exists. I write a reminder that I need to check out whether MySpace still exists after this review. (If I post this review on MySpace will it go back in time?)
I am a review monkey, a hooked-on-lyrical-words junkie, though this reviews rhymes might be skunky don’t let that put you off -- there is quite a big to enjoy, beyond inflatable Jesuses and sex toys. (Another nose bleed!)
The poem entitled “Jigsaw Angel” in particular is a favorite. I’d like to think it’s about imperfect people and imperfect relationships and our inability to put and keep things together. But...I don’t know for sure. “Broken Wings”, the sequel to “Jigsaw Angel”, was another poem that pulled my heart wings.
Who am I? Just another Goodreads review junkie, and though my attempts at rhymes might be skunky, don’t let that put you off. This is a fine collection of poetry!
In the first poem, you will find MySpace, download junkies, skunk-smoking geezers, and an inflatable Jesus. 1996-2006, indeed! A MySpace reference. I’d love to go back there if it still exists. I write a reminder that I need to check out whether MySpace still exists after this review. (If I post this review on MySpace will it go back in time?)
I am a review monkey, a hooked-on-lyrical-words junkie, though this reviews rhymes might be skunky don’t let that put you off -- there is quite a big to enjoy, beyond inflatable Jesuses and sex toys. (Another nose bleed!)
The poem entitled “Jigsaw Angel” in particular is a favorite. I’d like to think it’s about imperfect people and imperfect relationships and our inability to put and keep things together. But...I don’t know for sure. “Broken Wings”, the sequel to “Jigsaw Angel”, was another poem that pulled my heart wings.
Who am I? Just another Goodreads review junkie, and though my attempts at rhymes might be skunky, don’t let that put you off. This is a fine collection of poetry!
September 11, 2015
Mr Whitewolf does a wonderful thing where his poems are so openly from the heart, so simple in their message and emotions that he almost goads you into scoffing at him. In which case, who is the real fool for rejecting such openness, aching compassion and invitation to take up arms and fight back against whatever towering power he chooses to question with- GASP!- logic?
February 2, 2016
Another fantastic, if not timeless collection of poems from Whitewolf which make good use of his ability to flow like a great jazz song. This time they're often more introspective although his later themes of social justice and activism can still be found. For example there's a fantastic poem called Push Bush which is a great anti-Iraq War poem asking us: 'who sold the weapons anyway?'
The Knack of Slack Black is probably my favourite poem in this collection just because of its rawness. Other favourites are Boxed In which includes the line 'democracy and free will isn't how we really feel' and my favourite of all quotes comes from Green and Red: 'life is just getting out of the cold'. I think we can all take something from that.
Harry is a rare talent who has helped to make ignorant people appreciate poetry and for that I can't thank him enough. I'm looking forward to his upcoming release.
The Knack of Slack Black is probably my favourite poem in this collection just because of its rawness. Other favourites are Boxed In which includes the line 'democracy and free will isn't how we really feel' and my favourite of all quotes comes from Green and Red: 'life is just getting out of the cold'. I think we can all take something from that.
Harry is a rare talent who has helped to make ignorant people appreciate poetry and for that I can't thank him enough. I'm looking forward to his upcoming release.
January 16, 2016
If you are new to poetry then this is the place to start, Harry Whitewolf's poems are written in such a way you can instantly tell the pace and just what he is getting at. From Politics, shopping, love, red wine and phone shape it's all here in this collection. I am always amazed how anybody can write a poem, I can see how you would go about writing a story but it blows my mind how you start with a poem.
Each time I read one of these poems I would go "Yep that's my favourite", next poem would be "OK, this one is my favourite" this continues until I ran out of poems. Sick of politics has to be the winner, I'm happy to read that one again and again, brilliant stuff.
Make sure you check out Harry Whitewolf on YouTube to hear him reading his work.
Each time I read one of these poems I would go "Yep that's my favourite", next poem would be "OK, this one is my favourite" this continues until I ran out of poems. Sick of politics has to be the winner, I'm happy to read that one again and again, brilliant stuff.
Make sure you check out Harry Whitewolf on YouTube to hear him reading his work.
November 13, 2015
Well, I read the first nine--maybe too quickly.
September 10, 2016
You can read the first nine poems here:
https://www.goodreads.com/reader/7080...
Cheers!
https://www.goodreads.com/reader/7080...
Cheers!
September 19, 2015
You can read the first nine poems here:
http://www.goodreads.com/reader/70801...
Cheers!
September 12, 2016
5 more for unfinished monkey business...
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews