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S.M. Shuford Poetry Collection #0
Absolute Heaven
"The sin is not if, but when blood will form on my shackled hands"
Absolute Heaven is an omnibus of poems that capture the darkness which hides deep in the mind. Devilishly blurring the lines between romantic hatred and grotesque love, Absolute Heaven is a work of raw emotion, blood and nightmare that spans all genres of horror. Not for the faint of soul or the weak at heart. A precursor to the S.M. Shuford Poetry Collection, Absolute Heaven is fully illustrated and compiles ten books of haiku, experimental and traditional poetry, including the original short versions of the first four entries in the Collection. Absolute Heaven also contains an exclusive introduction piece and extensive notes on the series' early beginnings.
Absolute Heaven is an omnibus of poems that capture the darkness which hides deep in the mind. Devilishly blurring the lines between romantic hatred and grotesque love, Absolute Heaven is a work of raw emotion, blood and nightmare that spans all genres of horror. Not for the faint of soul or the weak at heart. A precursor to the S.M. Shuford Poetry Collection, Absolute Heaven is fully illustrated and compiles ten books of haiku, experimental and traditional poetry, including the original short versions of the first four entries in the Collection. Absolute Heaven also contains an exclusive introduction piece and extensive notes on the series' early beginnings.
192 pages, ebook
Published December 21, 2018
About the author
S.M. Shuford
15 books121 followersS.M. Shuford is a professional artist, hobbyist writer and former critic who publishes under her own label, Samael's Tuesday. She works in a neapolitan variety of genres, from nightmarish horror to romantic poetry, and often incorporates elements of Native American and Japanese mythology and art into her projects.
Shuford has written for Realistic Poetry International, among other independent publications, and in 2019 won an award of recognition for her work with indie creators. She is an advocate for mental health awareness.
Of note, some of her books were limited-print runs or are currently out-of-print, such as Loverboy the S.M. Shuford Poetry Collection, which will see later re-releases as The Gates of Paranoia and Heart of Blood and Tar.
Shuford has written for Realistic Poetry International, among other independent publications, and in 2019 won an award of recognition for her work with indie creators. She is an advocate for mental health awareness.
Of note, some of her books were limited-print runs or are currently out-of-print, such as Loverboy the S.M. Shuford Poetry Collection, which will see later re-releases as The Gates of Paranoia and Heart of Blood and Tar.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 16, 2018
3.5 Stars
This author does not disappoint if you’re looking for dark entertainment in your poetry. There are some seriously grotesque and disturbing poems and haikus in this collection, some of which went over my head, but a lot of which were so enthralling in their sinister descriptions. I especially enjoyed the poems as there is more to them to explain the context. I did struggle a bit with the haiku since they are so short and I don’t always feel smart enough to ‘get’ good poetry. But if I’m going to read poetry, this is the author I’m going to read. Dark, disturbing and atmospheric. I’m very glad I requested a copy of this collection from the author.
Received from author, and reviewed of my own accord.
This author does not disappoint if you’re looking for dark entertainment in your poetry. There are some seriously grotesque and disturbing poems and haikus in this collection, some of which went over my head, but a lot of which were so enthralling in their sinister descriptions. I especially enjoyed the poems as there is more to them to explain the context. I did struggle a bit with the haiku since they are so short and I don’t always feel smart enough to ‘get’ good poetry. But if I’m going to read poetry, this is the author I’m going to read. Dark, disturbing and atmospheric. I’m very glad I requested a copy of this collection from the author.
Received from author, and reviewed of my own accord.
September 8, 2018
If Edgar Allen Poe or Robert Louis Stevenson was a 21st century contemporary of S.M. Shuford, I would not care to speculate about who would have the greater influence over whom. Shuford has composed a highly effective book of literary unease in verse of both Western style and haiku. The title is a tease as the book is really the antithesis of serenity (though one might consider a mathematical perspective to grasp the title). Were Absolute Heaven transformed into visual media, I would liken it to a hybrid of the very darkest work of the young photographer, Gregor Petrikovic, and a less erotically obsessed version of surreal Japanese Ero Guro (Japanese erotic horror art) with some intellectual ancestry tracing back to Thomas Malthus. Shuford gives us a literary - quality examination of the organic, disturbing and even vulgar side of life.
The Western style title poem, "Absolute Heaven", lies in the middle of the book and evokes the sense that Heaven lies within a model of nihilistic Holy War. The first of three verses asserts that forgetting life is the key to Heaven. The second suggests that what is to be feared most in life is not a major agent of destruction - an army or dragon - but rather internal corruption. It is horrifyingly a propos to contemporary American politics in which people are content to normalize the abhorrent. The third hearkens back to the first and laments nihilism. The poem, over all, disturbs.
Another example of her Western style writing, "Biodemonology Piece", paints an exceptionally organic picture of what is to be feared about the faculties in life. Its symbolism hearkens to the religious iconography in "Lord of the Flies". It is tempting to find Gospel themes within it - even a darkest form of eucharest.
Other Western verse tackles the darker experiences of modern life. Shuford offers poems that pertain to drug dens, prostitution, suicide, and abortion, among others. She leads the reader directly to the interface of emotion and experience. The reader often needs to meditate to find the precise topics, however.
The book provides a wealth of haiku which are well organized into sections. *Blood Ballet* pertains, it seems, to original sin. *Parasite of the Sun* evokes a Malthusian stream of consciousness (esp. #53). *Ero-Guro Darlings* provides an alternate, biologically oriented model of Hades. These are just three of many collections.
Overall, one of the most frightening aspects of "Absolute Heaven" is the pertinence one finds to very contemporary sociopolitical issues. I refer the reader to 'Exhumation', 'Transient', and most particularly to Haiku #44 of her *Paradox Phenomena* collection (the NRA would not like it).
Shuford presents a volume of carefully themed collections of poetry. Always literary in quality, they bleed, expose madness, and follow the innate dark sides of life. They unsettle and do so marvelously.
The Western style title poem, "Absolute Heaven", lies in the middle of the book and evokes the sense that Heaven lies within a model of nihilistic Holy War. The first of three verses asserts that forgetting life is the key to Heaven. The second suggests that what is to be feared most in life is not a major agent of destruction - an army or dragon - but rather internal corruption. It is horrifyingly a propos to contemporary American politics in which people are content to normalize the abhorrent. The third hearkens back to the first and laments nihilism. The poem, over all, disturbs.
Another example of her Western style writing, "Biodemonology Piece", paints an exceptionally organic picture of what is to be feared about the faculties in life. Its symbolism hearkens to the religious iconography in "Lord of the Flies". It is tempting to find Gospel themes within it - even a darkest form of eucharest.
Other Western verse tackles the darker experiences of modern life. Shuford offers poems that pertain to drug dens, prostitution, suicide, and abortion, among others. She leads the reader directly to the interface of emotion and experience. The reader often needs to meditate to find the precise topics, however.
The book provides a wealth of haiku which are well organized into sections. *Blood Ballet* pertains, it seems, to original sin. *Parasite of the Sun* evokes a Malthusian stream of consciousness (esp. #53). *Ero-Guro Darlings* provides an alternate, biologically oriented model of Hades. These are just three of many collections.
Overall, one of the most frightening aspects of "Absolute Heaven" is the pertinence one finds to very contemporary sociopolitical issues. I refer the reader to 'Exhumation', 'Transient', and most particularly to Haiku #44 of her *Paradox Phenomena* collection (the NRA would not like it).
Shuford presents a volume of carefully themed collections of poetry. Always literary in quality, they bleed, expose madness, and follow the innate dark sides of life. They unsettle and do so marvelously.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews