“The mind is a blazing that gives off embers,” Will Alexander writes in the inscription in my copy of his blazing ars poetica,The Contortionist Whispers.) These three books from 2021/22, from Action, Roof, & New Directions, are an astounding contribution to North American poetry and poetics.
The struggle for freedom continues in Iran, sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, 22, who was murdered by the Iranian state for violating a mandatory dress code for woman. Last week, activist and poet Sepideh Jodeyri asked me to make a video for her friends in Iran and around the world; she posted this on IG and Twitter. I am grateful for the work she and Shahrzad F. Shams are doing in this difficult time, where hope is mixed with dread.
from World on Fire in Girly Man (University of Chicago Press, 2006)
"In a Restless World Like This Is" first appeared in World on Fire, which was published in Vancouver by Peter and Meredith Quatermain's Nomados in 2004, 24pp, with a cover image by Suan Bee. Meredith Quatermain's and Ron Silliman's responses to the book are at the EPC.
Today is the worldwide reading of the works of Salman Rushdie, sponsored by the Berlin Literary Festival. Watch Pierre Joris talk about the attack on Rushdie, with my introduction. Joris's essay was published this month in the Brooklyn Rail.We both then read from The Satanic Verses -- listen to the audio linked below.
My (v)ideo talk on poetry and audiobooks for a conference in Sweden: DLK (Den Lyssnande Kritiken: full series), Sept. 17, 2022. Thanks to Jesper Olsson.
"In a Restless World Like This Is" first appeared in World on Fire, which was published in Vancouver by Peter and Meredith Quatermain's Nomados in 2004, 24pp, with a cover image by Suan Bee. Meredith Quatermain's and Ron Silliman's responses to the book are at the 
