O Books, 1988–2009 (ed. Leslie Scalapino et al.)

Reissues
From O/Three: War (1993)
From O/Three: War (1993)

Breaking with standard Reissues format, this release celebrates an extraordinary set of editorial projects by a single editor over three related initiatives. Spanning twenty-one years from 1988 until 2009, Leslie Scalapino produced four O Books Anthologies, a single-issue magazine coedited with Rick London called enough, and a four-issue run of a magazine called War and Peace (coedited with Judith Goldman for issues 2–4). From O/One: An Anthology’s focus on “writing that questions and transgresses genre lines between forms of poetic and critical discourse” to the final issue of War and Peace, Scalapino’s editorial project continuously blurs categorical lines while challenging dominant discourses in both politics and poetics. Each collection gathers what Bernadette Mayer might call a “plural dream of social life.”

Each publication takes a particular focus or theme as its organizing principle. These include: O/One: An Anthology, O/Two: what is inside? what is outside?, O/Three: War, O/Four: Subliminal Time, enough, War & Peace, War & Peace 2: Poetry & Essays, War & Peace 3: The Future, and War & Peace 4: Vision & Text. 

Tracking these publications, an editorial through-line emerges: a focused bead on poetry’s capacity to speak to the politics of the present. War is ever-present in these pages. From the Gulf War to the post-9/11 global war that continues to this day, the on-the-ground responses of poets in these collections presciently address our ongoing situation. Proper names may have changed, but the news stays new. To read these pages is to see differently. As Scalapino contends in enough: “Seeing what’s happening is a form of change.”

Full issues are available for download or browsing below. The index to each issue attempts to retain the formatting of the contents as printed in the magazine, including original pagination. Each PDF is fully searchable and bookmarked for easy navigation to individual pieces within the magazine. 

O/One: An Anthology, edited by Leslie Scalapino (1988)  [PDF, 4 MB]

     

Contents 

Leslie Scalapino

About O One  

p.7

Larry Eigner

Anything On Its Side

p.13 

Benjamin Hollander

Commentary of the False Numbers—3, 4  

p.49
 

Sequence Articulate 

p.51 

Charles Bernstein

“The Only World We’ve Got“  

p.56

Alice Notley

Parts of a Wedding 

p.59 

Aaron Shurin

City of Men 

p.99 
 

From: Agora 

p.108 

Jerry Ratch

From: Plein-Air 

p.109 

Alan Davies

Cereal 

p.134 

Leslie Scalapino

leg 

p.137 

Tom Raworth

Jazz  

p.150

Rick London

Dear Tom 

p.157 

Nathaniel Mackey

From: Sound and Sentiment, Sound and Symbol 

p.158 

Robert Grenier

Tongues of Angel Make/For Union With The Make 

p.163 

Larry Kearney

From: Intelligence 

p.165 

Rick London

3 

p.168 

Lyn Hejinian

The Composition of the Cell 

p.170

Robert Grenier

From: Phantom Anthems 

p.175

Michael Palmer

Sun 

p.178

Norma Cole

From: Little Songs of Médor 

p.181

Abigail Child

A Motive for Mayhem 

p.185

 

O/Two An Anthology: what is the inside, what is the outside?, edited by Leslie Scalapino (1991) [PDF, 9 MB]

     

Contents  

Carla Harryman  From: The Words p.3
Leslie Scalapino  From 3 Parts of: Waking Life p.15
Fanny Howe  Random and Finite Being: A Biography p.33
Laura Moriarty  Spicer’s City p.37
Lynne Dreyer  From: Easy Winners p.44
Alan Davies  Panther p.51
Gil Ott  From: The Whole Note p.57
Mei-mei Berssenbrugge and Richard Tuttle Hiddenness p.61
Kit Robinson  Countermeditations p.72
Cydney Chadwick  From: 3: Shape p.77
Karen Kelly  The Interpretation of Dreams (Virtual Reality No. 1) p.80
Geoffrey O’Brien  From: The Army p.82
Bernadette Mayer  From: A Lecture at the Naropa Institute, 1989 p.89
Clark Coolidge From: Comes Through in the Call Hold (Improvisations on Cecil Taylor) p.107
Victor Hernández Cruz  From: Three Movements p.110
Anne Waldman  Go-Between Between p.116
Bruce Andrews  Beyond Suture p.123
Aaron Shurin  In the Flesh p.129
Laura Feldman  From: Moving Carrier p.134
Norma Cole Anaphora p.144
Tina Darragh  Adv. Fans p.149
Harryette Mullen  From: Trimmings p.152
Rae Armantrout  Confidential p.154
Hannah Weiner  From: Control p.157
Dennis Phillips  From: Etudes p.166
Todd Baron  From: Index p.167
Suzi Roberts  From: Sound Sonnets p.168
Beverly Dahlen  Three Untitled Poems p.169
Sally Doyle  Shepherding p.171
Jessica Grim  A Short History of the Western World p.173
Steven Benson  Lese Majesty, or “Leave Me Alone” p.174

 

 O/Three: War, edited by Leslie Scalapino (1993) [PDF, 4 MB] 

    
 
Contents
 
Jerry Estrin  From: Rome, A Mobile Home p.3
Alan Davies  Bush Whacked p.11
Fanny Howe Tis of Thee p.17
Leslie Scalapino From: Waking Life p.20
Laura Moriarty  Five Poems p.24
Norma Cole  From: Saturn p.29
 

O/Four: Subliminal Time, edited by Leslie Scalapino (1993) [PDF, 7 MB]

     

Contents

Laynie Browne  Sending the Lake p.5
Lizbeth Keiley  Her Stranger in Exile p.12
Aaron Shurin  Human Immune p.15
Jena Osman  Five Poems p.19
Laura Moriarty  From: Cunning: Ned Bright p.29
Susan Howe  Extracts from Melville’s Marginalia p.32
A.A. Hedge Coke  Pine Ridger with a Lambourghini Dream p.35
Robert Grenier  Hot Afternoons Have Been in Bolinas p.45
Norma Cole  From: Rosetta p.56
George Albon  From: Cosmophagy p.65
Jerry Estrin  From: Rome, A Mobile Home p.66
Randall Potts  Abandon p.70
John D. Greb  Poems p.72
Carla Harryman and Lyn Hejinian  A Comment on The Wide Road for O p.83
Lori Lubeski  From: Sweet land of (fabric) woven p.91
Milton Apache  Cabal Devours Kisses p.97
Eileen Myles The Poet in the World p.98

 

enough, edited by Leslie Scalapino & Rick London (2003) [PDF, 10 MB]

     

Contents

Michael McClure  Black Dahlia; Madame Secretary; Souls p.5
Sasha Steensen  This Land; From Spatial Spectacles p.8
Alice Notley  Back; Destroy; How the Dead May Operate from Negative Space p.10
Mahmoud Darwish  from A State of Siege; from Memory for Forgetfulness p.14
Ibrahim Muhawi  Bad Moon Rising p.19
Pierre Joris  9/11/01 p.22
Nasri Hajjaj  A Hungry Orange, Mr. Dheeb al-Rifa’i, Psychotherapy, The Man Who Devoured Himself, Laila’s Face, Honey Fig, Hebron (AI-Khalil), Three Cows in Hamra Street p.23
Eileen Myles  The Sweet Pain of It p.26
Leslie Scalapino  Flower, Pal Comic Book; Pal Mal Comic, Or; Slaves’ outside evening or evening, Pal Mal Comic p.28
Rick London  Coming down; Folk Form; Performance Sequence  p.32
Heather Fuller  Multiple-theater; Comic; Day Labor p.35
Ronny Someck  Transparent p.38
Lawrence Ferlinghetti  Extasis p.38
Nathaniel Mackey  Song of the Andoumboulou 58 p.39
Jalal Toufic  The Emperor’s New Costume, Or the Case of the Missing Mask p.43
Alan Davies from Pain p.48
Will Alexander from Concerning The Henbane Bird p.51
Lyn Hejinian from The Fatalist p.55
Larry Kearney  The Man with His Kids on a Table p.57
Anselm Berrigan  Selected Poses: Drugged and Hooded into a Prose Poem; Anti-preening Poem p.61
Philip Whalen  Silence in the Middle of Traffic p.62
Jen Hofer  Of Death, Days, Futures, Nations; Tactics; Of Death, Days, Futures, Nations; Tactics; Of Death, Days, Futures, Nations p.63
Sarah Menefee  30-Sep p.67
Abdel Kader El Janabi  Against Ibn Arabi; If Only the Horse was Left to its Solitude; Ink p.74
Mei-mei Berssenbrugge  Safety p.76
Charles Bernstein  Let’s Just Say p.76
Beau Beausoleil  Wearing; This Gate; Traces p.78
Lisa Jarnot  Swamp Formalism; My Terrorist Notebook; The United States of America p.80
Judith Goldman  The Real Devotion of Events p.81
Pat Reed  September 11; September 18 p.88
Ed Roberson  The Counsel of Birds; The Answers; Memorium p.89
Joanne Kyger  Deeply Immoral, Arrogant and Ignorant p.92
Murilo Mendes from Chaos’s Window (1, 5, 7, 8, 11); Graffito in Maknes; Christmas 1961 p.93
Tina Darragh & P. Inman  number to number p.96
Tom Raworth  Ozymandias p.97
Michael Rothenberg  Apocalyptic Yearnings/October 2-7. 2001 p.98
Jena Osman  Dropping Leaflets p.100
Rochelle Mass  No Surprises p.101
Ibrahim Nasrallah from Salvos of Mercy, Bewildered; Race; Friendship; Days; Facts; Freedom; Endings; Death; Childhood; Dust 1; Dust 2; Dust 3; Dust 4, Homeland, Fidelity; from Mirrors, Excess, Loneliness I, Loneliness 2. p.102
Benjamin Friedlander  Dick Cheney’s Heart; State of the Union; The L.B.J. Tapes p.106
Harryette Mullen  Land of the Discount Prices, Home of the Brand Name p.108
Rod Smith  Ted’s Head p.109
Norman Fischer  The Violence of Oneness p.110
Christine Monhollen  White Trace Close p.113
Fanny Howe  Little Wrongs; White Lines p.114
Diane Di Prima  Hebron; Les Americains; Notes Toward a Poem of Revolution p.121
David Buuck from Stanzas in Mediation  p.126
Etel Adnan  Maïakovsky p.131
Bill Berkson  Bridge, Gloria p.137
Craig Watson from Home Guard p.138
Jackson Mac Low  Central America p.139
Ted Pearson  Sound Check p.143
Jennifer Scappettone  From Consensus Series p.145
Elizabeth Robinson  From The Undoing (i, ii, iii, iv, v) p.146
Sargon Boulus  Entries for a Possible Poem p.150
Beth Baruch Joselow  We Startle Things p.152
Anne Waldman  From Worry Yr Logos Conversant You Speak to the Dead p.154
Robert Grenier  Autumn Moon Rising p.155
  Notes on Contributors p.156

 

War & Peace, edited by Leslie Scalapino (2004) [PDF, 8 MB]

     

Contents

Judith Goldman  case senSitive p.7
Juliana Spahr  March 27 and 30, 2003 p.28
Etel Adnan  To Keep a Diary in a Time of War p.31
Leslie Scalapino  from “Can’t” is “Night” p.37
Rob Holloway  Two Poems p.41
Anselm Berrigan  Postcard to Brett Evans p.43
Jackson Mac Low  They’re Ruthless and They’re Inept. p.48
Alan Davies  Bad Dad p.54
Kiki Smith  Two Drawings p.65
Taylor Brady  from Production Notes for Occupation: Shot List p.69
Simone Fattal  Untitled Sculpture p.72
kari edwards  oddly shaped four times p.73
Norma Cole  from new notebook p.74
Anne Waldman  from Beat Roots p.78
Rodrigo Toscano  dream-construct of a dream constructed p.79
Paolo Javier  To Wreck Irak p.87
Fanny Howe  Vigilence p.91
Stephen Ratcliffe  from Cloud / Ridge p.95
Robert Grenier  Rain and It Rains p.97
Lissa Wolsak  from A Defence of Being p.102
Alice Notley  Three Poems p.105

 

War & Peace 2: Poetry & Essays, edited by Judith Goldman & Leslie Scalapino (2005) [PDF, 6 MB]  

   

Contents

Laura Elrick from Fantasies in Permeable Structures  p.7 
Laynie Browne  from The Desires of Letters  p.11
  from Daily Sonnets  p.14
Brandon Brown from E PODES  p.15 
Steve Benson “NOVEMBER in December”  p.17 
Chris Vitiello “Irresponsibility”  p.25 
Aaron Kunin from “Five Security Zones”  p.27 
Tina Darragh “(dis-pose)–>ABLE creatures”  p.28 
Laura Moriarty from “Departures 1-11/War in Heaven”  p.30
Jen Hofer “less then more then less again then (then again) none/not one (the absence of (necessary) silence)”  p.34 
Jerome Rothenberg “A Clear Astonishment”  p.36 
Geoffrey O’Brien “They met only in the evening”  p.37 
Dolores Dorantes  from “September for Jen,” translated by Jen Hofer p.38 
Stacy Doris “Time’s a free illusion”  p.43 
Robert Creeley and Francesco Clemente from Tandoori Satori and Commonplace  p.45
     
Poetry in a Time of Crisis: Is Poetry Enough?     
University of California, Santa Cruz, April 2004     p.49
     
TALKS    
Leslie Scalapino “Writing Being/An Event”  p.50
Joanne Kyger “Poetry in Time of Crisis”  p.53
Jen Scappettone  “Poetry, Intelligence, and the Temporality of Crisis” p.56
Judith Goldman “Representing the Global War on Terror”  p.60
Taylor Brady “They Store It Up (slight return): Notes around Lines by George Oppen”  p.62
     
READINGS    
Leslie Scalapino From ‘Can’t’ is ‘Night’  p.64
Joanne Kyger “The Distressed Look” and “‘Not In Our Name’”  p.68
Jen Scappettone Four Poems  p.70
Judith Goldman from “FatBoy/DeathStar/Ricochet”  p.73
Taylor Brady “The Crawl”  p.78
     
Mark Wallace from The Long Republican Winter  p.85
Tracy Grinnell and Paul Foster Johnson from Quadriga  p.87
Roxi Hamilton “‘Naturally one does not know how it happened’”  p.90
Stephen Ratcliffe from Human/Nature  p.92
Jocelyn Saidenberg “Rummy, Or, A Poem Beginning with a Line from the Defense Secretary”  p.93
Rae Armantrout Three Poems  p.94
Alicia Cohn “Wolf and the White Rag”  p.97
Michael Davidson “The Crawl”  p.99
Tyrone Williams Two Poems  p.103
Michael McClure Two Poems  p.104
Yedda Morrison from Girl Scout Nation  p.106
Ibrahim Nasrallah “The Fox’s Scandal,” translated by Rick London and Omnia Amin  p.107

 

War & Peace 3: The Future, edited by Judith Goldman & Leslie Scalapino (2007) [PDF, 6 MB]

     

Contents

Evelyn Reilly   Variations on a Sentence by Rosmarie Waldrop  p.1
Rob Halpern   More Theses, on the Remembrance of Things to Come p.5
Jennifer Scappettone   The Republic of Exit 43 p.8
Brenda lijima  Flight, Flight, from Remembering Animals p.11
Thom Donovan  Into Bride (Army of Roses) p.16
Leslie Scalapino  Dysmetria, from Floats Horse-floats or Horse-flows p.24
Judith Goldman  Notes against the Form of Appearance p.27
Stephanie Young  Chapter Seven: I Do What I Don’t Want to Do p.34
Mary Burger   Look – Here Comes a Human  p.40
Rodrigo Toscano   Pig Angels of the Americlypse p.42
Suzanne Stein   Allegory or the Triumph of Justice [The Future]  p.51
C. A. Conrad  we’re on the brink of UTTER befuddlement yellow hankie style • say it with grEEn paint for the comfort of healing their wounds  p.54
Jim Hartz  Fallujah • Future Museum • Vajradhatu p.60
Michael McClure   from Swirling Asphalt  p.62
Michael Cross   Sacred  p.67
Robert Mittenthal   from Gibbons Tail  p.71
David Brazil   Angel, What p.74
Dana Teen Lomax   Lullaby [“i am in no condition”] • Lullaby [“closer in comparative evolution”] • Lullaby [“cradling the bomb, nuptials written”] p.82
Yuri Herrera   Aztlán, D. C. p.84
Lauren Shufran   from resolve  p.87
Bruce Andrews   Yessified  p.95
Paolo Javier   from Lunatic p.102
Susan Landers   Gluttons, Broken by Rain (Canto 6) • Every woman adores ousting a facist • Everything I Am Today Took Days to Drive the Noise Out • Vestibule to Hell (Canto 3), from Covers p.107
Jen Hofer   from one  p.111
Lisa Jarnot   Will This Change p.118
Fanny Howe   A Message • Metempsychosis  p.119
Brandon Brown  The Emperor Will Have Worn N(o)ew Clothes p.122
Jocelyn Saidenberg   DESERTION, OR SHE WHO MISPLACES AFFECTION UPON WHICH IS MEANEST p.124
Rae Armantrout   Running • On Your Way • Around p.126
Lyn Hejinian   The Future p.129
Elizabeth Treadwell Jackson   from Virginia or the mud-flap girl • Spring Chamber • 3rd Day of School • Goldenfish p.133
Laynie Browne   from The Hidden Book of the Institute  p.135
Anne Waldman   RIGPA, from Colors in the Mechanism of Concealment, Iovis 3  p.138
Anselm Hollo   Down in Flames, Up in Smoke  p.142
Stephen Ratcliffe   from Human / Nature  p.146
Tanesia Hale Jones   An Item • A Memorial • A Lover • A House • A Lover  p.148
Roberto Harrison   weapons concealed in the roof of her mouth  p.150
David Buuck   Imaging after Abu Ghraib  p.154
M. Mara Ann   from Containment Scenario: DisloInterMedTextldentCation: Horse Medicine p.158

 


War & Peace 4: Vision & Text, edited by Judith Goldman & Leslie Scalapino (2009) [PDF, 14 MB]  

   

Contents

Petah Coyne  Black Cloud • Note on the sculpture by Leslie Scalapino  p.1
Kiki Smith and Leslie Scalapino  from The Animal is in the World like Water in Water  p.2
Leslie Scalapino  Note on The Animal is in the World like Water in Water: The Division Between Fact and Experience p.11
Abigail Child  from War Correspondence p.13
Susan Bee and Charles Bernstein  Vision is question and response p.20
Charles Bernstein  Today Is the Last Day of Your Life ‘til Now • If You Say Something, See Something p.23
Amy Evans McClure and Michael McClure  An untitled collaboration p.24
Marjorie Welish  Isle of the Signatories • In Situ p.26
Marjorie Welish and Judith Goldman  Interview on “Isle of the Signatories” • Two images from Oaths? Questions? by Marjorie Welish and James Siena p.33
Judith Goldman  But to me [redo] • Ad terminem p.50
Lyn Hejinian  Nothing: A Silent Film p.56
Mei-mei Berssenbrugge and Leslie Scalapino  Interview about Communicating with Plants p.58
Mei-mei Berssenbrugge  from Glitter • from Slow Down Now • from Hello, the Roses p.62
E. Tracy Grinnell  Vision(ary) as (re)ordering that’s creating our seeing • The Private World of Darkness • Hell and Lower Evil p.64
Simone Fattal  Untitled • Note on the sculpture by Simone Fattal  p.69
Michael Cross  Pax p.70
Denise Newman  Note on her collaboration with Gigi Janchang • from Future People p.72
Gigi Janchang  Two photographs from Portraits: 2084 p.73
Thom Donovan  Eight Poems p.75
Etel Adnan  I have not “seen” war  p.80
Fanny Howe  Named p.85
John Beer  Mary, Color Scientist • Descriptive Poem  p.86
Patrick Durgin  from Untitled Triptych p.91
Jen Scappettone  Two Pop-Ups from Exit 43 p.93
Jenny Boully  from The Body: An Essay p.95
Jenny Boully and Lauren Shufran  Interview on The Body: An Essay p.97
Liz Willis  Exquisite Replica p.109
Brenda Iijima  Dictator of the lucky arm • Impulse or reversing  p.111
Alan Halsey  In White Writing: 42, 43, 46  p.113
Stephen Ratcliffe  from Remarks on Color / (Sound)  p.116
Kim Rosenfield and Cheryl Donegan  One Real Good Tomorrow p.117

 

 

 

September 10, 2020
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