Controlled Explosions

Penguin Modern Poets #2

by Michael Robbins, Patricia Lockwood, Timothy Thornton

The Penguin Modern Poets are succinct guides to the richness and diversity of contemporary poetry. Every volume brings together representative selections from the work of three poets now writing, allowing the curious reader and the seasoned lover of poetry to encounter the most exciting voices of our moment.

"Is it any wonder I've got
too much blood on my hands? The calls
are coming from inside the house.
I'm sick of my insane demands."
— Michael Robbins, 'Peel Off the Scabs'

". . . The childhood of the dunk
was no childhood at all.
He practiced on a paper route, throwing The Sun
to the same place each morning. Did not sleep long
but when he slept, the springs of his bed imparted
something to him. At night the streetlight floated
down and let him dribble it."
— Patricia Lockwood, 'The Descent of the Dunk'

"if my signal drops it's because i've climbed with them, we're so high now
i can in one single inverted yawn of my eyes full of skin and sex and fury see the whole city i so slowly streetlamp by streetlamp from the other side spent my life seeing in a drowning

"and this one boy here he's doing
he's doing a painting, it's the last day of august, it's a painting of a bed and"
— Timothy Thornton, 'Voicemail for David Hoyle'

Genres: Poetry, Anthologies

122 pages, ebook

First published October 27, 2016

About the author

Author of the poetry collections Alien vs. Predator (Penguin, 2012) and The Second Sex (Penguin, 2014). Winner of The Believer's Reader Survey for Best Book of Poetry, 2012. Recipient of Poetry Magazine's Editors Prize for Reviewing, 2013. A critical book, Equipment for Living, is forthcoming from Simon & Schuster.

Reviews

[Alice]

It's always interesting to give some new poets a go, but sadly none of this was my cup of tea.

[Alex]

I really enjoyed Michael Robbins section and want to go back through it with a pencil and google at the ready and properly annotate it. Patricia Lockwood's section was Ok, and I really, really did not get on with Timothy Thornton's but at all. Overall a mixed bag but looking forward to the next one!

[bianca]

I think I enjoyed this collection more than the first one. There are a few poems which stood out to me in particular and the overall collection seemed a bit more cohesive than the first.

[Philip Coulter]

Michael Robbins was kind of fun in small doses. Beyond that it could feel like a string of disconnected phrases.

Patricia Lockwood, I preferred her novel, the writing is a bit 'Internet' for me and i thought that worked better.

Timothy Thornton went completely beyond me. I'm not even sure where to start.

[Juliano]

Michael Robbins' poems were a joy to read, and though Patricia Lockwood's poems were hit-and-miss, the ones that hit were really powerful. Timothy Thornton, unfortunately, didn't quite do it for me on the whole.

[Ely]

I read through a few poems by each poet, but none of it was my cup of tea. This is the only book I've DNFed this year too, so that's saying something.

[Munira]

I enjoyed the last poet's works the most but overall this collection didn't click for me.

[Ruari Paterson-Achenbach]

REALLY excellent - less enamoured with Thornton's work but if the book was Robbins and Lockwood (esp) then it would be 5*

[J Grimsey]

Interesting read of three fairly modern poets.

[Liselot]

Misschien twee mooie gedichten in een stapel van woorden

[Claudia]

Michael Robbins **
Patricia Lockwood: ***
Timothy Thornton: *