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The Portable Famine: poems
Poetry. Gay and Lesbian studies. "Erotic, irreverent, mournful, political, Arroyo's lyrics and narratives surprise, often by juxtaposing literary erudition and popular culture within the same stanza. The result is a hybrid poetics all his own. Read his arguments, direct addresses, dream poems, elegies, family narratives, and love poems to experience an incisive, original mind exploring `the square roots of restlessness.'"--Robin Becker.
- GenresPoetry
63 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2005
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August 4, 2025
Poet Rane Arroyo was my poetry instructor in college. He was a hard professor to please, this much I remember.
His poetry in Portable Famine is filled with humor and recollection, tho light on metaphor and hardly metaphysical. His writing, like many contemporary poetry, is more prose than verse, and heavy with sloppy enjambment. Are all creative writers this terrible in bed?
Arroyo is a decent poet, but like most academic writers, focused way too much on his career credentials and not enough on his creativity. He has won countless awards, but honestly, no one cares. Like most professors, his aim is on finding a new job and staying professionally relevant, which is fine I guess, but makes for some terrible poetry.
But Arroyo has travelled, and sadly, for a creative writer who lived and worked in Toledo, does not seem to care about our city too much. Like an arrogant immigrant, he took for granted a generous job at the University of Toledo and spent most of the time bitching about this town. Religion would have shaped him better as a writer, and perhaps humbled him a little, reminding him that gratefulness also makes for good poetry. Alas, he passed away in bitterness, though he was a generous tho harsh instructor. He once gave me a free poetry book and didn't seem to expect much in return. The older I get and as more time passes on, I cannot help but admit I miss Rane as a human more than I do as an author. I cannot think of any higher praise I can give him.
His poetry in Portable Famine is filled with humor and recollection, tho light on metaphor and hardly metaphysical. His writing, like many contemporary poetry, is more prose than verse, and heavy with sloppy enjambment. Are all creative writers this terrible in bed?
Arroyo is a decent poet, but like most academic writers, focused way too much on his career credentials and not enough on his creativity. He has won countless awards, but honestly, no one cares. Like most professors, his aim is on finding a new job and staying professionally relevant, which is fine I guess, but makes for some terrible poetry.
But Arroyo has travelled, and sadly, for a creative writer who lived and worked in Toledo, does not seem to care about our city too much. Like an arrogant immigrant, he took for granted a generous job at the University of Toledo and spent most of the time bitching about this town. Religion would have shaped him better as a writer, and perhaps humbled him a little, reminding him that gratefulness also makes for good poetry. Alas, he passed away in bitterness, though he was a generous tho harsh instructor. He once gave me a free poetry book and didn't seem to expect much in return. The older I get and as more time passes on, I cannot help but admit I miss Rane as a human more than I do as an author. I cannot think of any higher praise I can give him.
Displaying 1 of 1 review