Truth and Affection: The ‘Poet’s Notebook’ Columns from Creative Loafing

by Peter Meinke

Jeanne Clark Meinke is an artist with drawings in The New Yorker, Gourmet, Yankee, numerous other periodicals, and in her book Lines from Wildwood Lane. Peter Meinke is an author whose work has been published in The Atlantic, The New Yorker, The New Republic, Poetry, Tampa Review, seven books of the Pitt Poetry Series, and in two collections of fiction. He is Poet Laureate of St. Petersburg, Florida. Together they deliver Truth and Affection in the “Poet’s Notebook” columns that have appeared in Creative Loafing over a period of more than six years. As David Warner writes in his foreword, it “is difficult to define, a tasty bouillabaisse of poetry, politics, and personal essay . . . winning hearts and minds of all ages . . . and a few awards along the way.”

512 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Jonathan Tennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter Meinke has spent a lifetime teaching poetry. This collection of 'Poet's Notebook' columns, illustrated by Jeanne Clark Meinke, continue that love of teaching poetry. But unlike what I recall from my high school english teachers, he makes poetry approachable and interesting, tying the greats together with current events in a way that would appear preachy if not crafted so well. Thoroughly enjoyed this collection and the follow-up, To Start with, Feel Fortunate.