Maine: Poems

by Jonah Winter

FROM THE BACK COVER Hypocrite reader, mon somblobble, Jonah Winter will New York School you in the woodshed of his imagination! These poems remind me of Robert Bresson's Four Nights of a Dreamer, in which a tape recorder spews out the blurts and ravings of the heart at inappropriate moments. Maine is a hemorrhage of the goofy, the sinister, and the sublime. - James Cummins Jonah Winter's poems are relentless attacks on the status quo. They turn pop culture on its head in hot pursuit of untainted love. And they are funny, if whiplash can be funny. Winter is a serious, new poet, with talent galore, blazing a trail, along which unknown treasures are sure to be found. - James Tate

Genres: Poetry

Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Jonah Winter is the celebrated author of many picture book biographies, including Barack, which was a New York Times bestseller. His books include Here Comes the Garbage Barge, Sonia Sotomayor, Roberto Clemente, and more. A poet and a painter, Mr. Winter divides his time between Santa Fe and a small town in Pennsylvania.

Reviews

[Brian Foley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to go to City Lights in San Francisco to find this. NO I WILL NOT ORDER FROM AMAZON!

Some of the pieces in this are just stunning. Winter's conversationalist tone manages for the most part to be effective without overpowering, and his acute imagery remains memorable long after the finish. Some of the longer pieces tend to drag, but buy this book alone for the first three pieces and his practices in sonatas.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave this book away today (because I thought it would make a good birthday gift for a childhood friend) and felt a twang and twinge as it went through the post office window. As I walked back home, I thought back on the poems that were no longer in my shelf (the sestina "Bob," for instance), and got some salmon caviar for consolation. The caviar is now gone, so I'll be getting another copy soon.

[Rich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite simply, a fantastic book with an absurd sense of humor. Most notably, and most memorable, the book contain a few sestinas, proving that even formal poems can come off sounding like half-crazed rants.