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Infinity Standing Up
"Infinity Standing Up" tells the messy, rowdy, off-again/on-again story of a passionate love affair in the form of 40 generally Shakespearean sonnets, each one a square box of 14 lines, 10 beats to a line, rhyming true to the form: abab, cdcd, efef, gg. Each one is a meticulously crafted dog-crate for the untrained puppy of love.
Of course these are not the first sonnets to attempt the task of wrestling a doggish passion into order. Poet Drew Pisarra joins a long line of lovers who have used the sonnet form to rebuild walls and repair roofs after a hurricane of love and loss. These sonnets are Shakespearean, in form and also spirit, in their celebration of the lustful male body, in their evocation of a dark young rival, in their hope and wonder and ultimately bitter betrayal and loss.
“These poems navigate the rapids of desire in a form that wa made for twists and turns of feeling, from the derangement of lust to rueful self-reflection. Drew Pisarra honors the Shakespearean sonnet’s tradition of wit and economy, while simultaneously delivering the pleasurable shock of 2st-century idiom.” Joan Larkin, author of "Cold River" (Lambda Literary Award)
Of course these are not the first sonnets to attempt the task of wrestling a doggish passion into order. Poet Drew Pisarra joins a long line of lovers who have used the sonnet form to rebuild walls and repair roofs after a hurricane of love and loss. These sonnets are Shakespearean, in form and also spirit, in their celebration of the lustful male body, in their evocation of a dark young rival, in their hope and wonder and ultimately bitter betrayal and loss.
“These poems navigate the rapids of desire in a form that wa made for twists and turns of feeling, from the derangement of lust to rueful self-reflection. Drew Pisarra honors the Shakespearean sonnet’s tradition of wit and economy, while simultaneously delivering the pleasurable shock of 2st-century idiom.” Joan Larkin, author of "Cold River" (Lambda Literary Award)
- GenresPoetry
68 pages, Paperback
Published January 12, 2019
About the author
Drew Pisarra
14 books34 followersDrew Pisarra once toured his monologues on both coasts and even had a ventriloquist act but has since retired from the world of dummies. His poetry has been called "brazen and lusty and often amusing" by "The Washington Post" while his short stories have been described as "thematically complex and often disturbing" by "The Empty Closet."
He is also the recipient of grants/commissions from Cafe Royal Cultural Foundation, Curious Elixirs: Curious Creators, Portland Art Museum, P.I.C.A., Brooklyn Arts Exchange, and Imago Theatre. Additionally, he was a featured poet at The Whitney Biennial 2022, as part of a two-day reading marathon hosted by A Gathering of the Tribes.
He is also the recipient of grants/commissions from Cafe Royal Cultural Foundation, Curious Elixirs: Curious Creators, Portland Art Museum, P.I.C.A., Brooklyn Arts Exchange, and Imago Theatre. Additionally, he was a featured poet at The Whitney Biennial 2022, as part of a two-day reading marathon hosted by A Gathering of the Tribes.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 29, 2022
Drew Pisarra laments and lampoons the trajectory of an affair with lyrical aplomb and sometimes cynical humor.
Infinity Standing Up is a collection of sonnet-shaped snapshots that chronicle a romance with a younger paramour. Like photographs, they are often candid, funny and raw: the speaker in these poems tells the tale in many voices, like peeling away layers of paint to reveal surprises beneath.
Pisarra also shows his playwright's side: the titles are like whimsical stage directions (Sonnet Seventeen magazine; Sonnet 11pm), and the poems sometimes read as miniature monologues. With dramatic closing couplets like "6 is for half dozen, E is for egg/Get your ass up here before I renege", I can almost hear the lens close on a spotlight blackout.
"Take your broken heart, make it into art";
Drew Pisarra shows that a late-night sext and pajamas on the floor can be made into poetry. Brilliantly.
Infinity Standing Up is a collection of sonnet-shaped snapshots that chronicle a romance with a younger paramour. Like photographs, they are often candid, funny and raw: the speaker in these poems tells the tale in many voices, like peeling away layers of paint to reveal surprises beneath.
Pisarra also shows his playwright's side: the titles are like whimsical stage directions (Sonnet Seventeen magazine; Sonnet 11pm), and the poems sometimes read as miniature monologues. With dramatic closing couplets like "6 is for half dozen, E is for egg/Get your ass up here before I renege", I can almost hear the lens close on a spotlight blackout.
"Take your broken heart, make it into art";
Drew Pisarra shows that a late-night sext and pajamas on the floor can be made into poetry. Brilliantly.
May 11, 2019
Only a contemporary romantic would write a book of sonnets. Only Drew Pisarra could do it with such aplomb, precision and skill. In this collection’s infinitely delightful world, Cupid and Betrayal pursue the same lover across spaces that are alternately shady, sentient and linguistically mad.
Did Not Finish
May 22, 2025Not for me.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews