uniquely constructed self

by Nate Pritts

Genres: Poetry

12 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Nate Pritts is the author of eight books of poetry, most recently Post Human (2016) and Decoherence (2017). Publishers Weekly described his fifth book, Sweet Nothing (2011), as “both baroque and irreverent, banal and romantic, his poems […] arrive at a place of vulnerability and sincerity.” POETRY Magazine called his The Wonderfull Yeare (2009), “rich, vivid, intimate, & somewhat troubled” while The Rumpus called Big Bright Sun (2010) “a textual record of mistakes made and insights gleaned…[in] a voice that knows its part in self-destruction.”

Reviews

[Edita · Rating 3 out of 5]

we hurry through the days that are called life,

[Stef · Rating 5 out of 5]

First I want to thank Nate for the chapbook. It was superb, really delightful!

These poems were beautifully innocent, and compellingly human. Such a joy to read, touching and thoroughly enjoyable. I love that the poems were constructed from student English papers - reminds me of some (ok, many) of the papers I've edited, and the unintentionally overwrought naïveté of each line sparkles as it reflects inward and proves that it's brave enough to laugh at what it sees w/in.

Really spectacular. I will be rereading these short pieces many, many times in the future, and sharing them w/ friends - and anyone else who will read them!

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just read the first two poems. It's really cool to see how this series moves so deftly from 19th century Britain (I'm thinking of Housman in the first poem) to mid-late 20th century America in the second (Ashbery, maybe). Then I realized they are found pieces, which disappointed me because I thought it would be really brave to see someone making a book this way, but at the same time it's impressive as a curatorial feat.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This slim volume of poems was written from student papers -- so I found that reading this book was a romp into the playful world of creative language(often, not intentional) of student writing. I teach a variety of writing classes at a community college -- I'm going to take a closer look at my students' words to see how they may be poetry!

[Alexander · Rating 4 out of 5]

Formalist recipes have a tendency to be invasive and excessively visible: the "dispositif" gets in the way, as it were. This is not at all the case for uniquely constructed self, whose formal origins are not strictly necessary, almost circumstantial. A very worthwhile read.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Complicated thread of somewhat distressed and deceptively casual concern with/insistence on Happiness.