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 Home Chris Mansel's Book Reviews
13 Book Reviews A Review of Mishpocheh by Stanley H. Barkan
Stanley H. Barkan writes with beautiful wisdom, the kind of wisdom that can only be explained face to face, perhaps hand in hand. The opening piece of Mishpocheh is a small bit of fiction; it’s short in length but is as monumental as anything I have read. The story is of a child who sees the error of his ways and rights the wrong but is left scared by the wrong he has done. I have always believed that writing, whether it be fiction or poetry, any kind of storytelling can ease the pain, can enlighten, and can be the one thing in life that will make a difference when all else is lost. The writing reminds me of Allen Gins berg’s Kaddish, the detailed storytelling; the verbal scrapbook. The art featured within is by Mr. Barkan’s wife, Bebe Barkan. Her work suggests a Russian-Jewish influence to my eye, very well indeed. This is just a sweet and adorable work, a work that will be passed on like the story of a family, of a people proud in its traditions.
The cost of this book is: $10.00
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Cross-Cultural Communications 239 Wynsum Avenue Merrick, NY 11566-4725 USA
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A Review of Deadly Pollen by Stephen Oliver
Nothing is so diverse as imagination and nothing so unforgivable as the lack of it. Which do we have in Deadly Pollen? A line from the title poem, Deadly Pollen:
“To every Age a new generation, bigger weapons to sound the void.”
I really like this poem and it makes up most of the book, which is fine. Here is another small part of the same poem.
‘The Breaking of Nations’ a horse cough, as history laments its own passing. What ghosts urge these riots? Memory is dead, flags and banners dissolve back into throughfares.”
Yes the memory of a once great land does sometime become what another build upon. A writer publishes a book and another is inspired. A small stone is thrown into a still pond and sends a ripple sure, but under the water remember that the murky depths are forever changed. You have to look sometimes a little closer to interpret the repercussions of a single act. What is the cure for deadly pollen? I’m not so sure I want to know to be honest.
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Word Riot Press PO BOX 414 Middletown, NJ 07748 USA
www.wordriot.org/press
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I suppose if you were to eat the dictionary with just a bit of a simple sauce, little oregano, tomato and garlic and were to regurgitate it out then you might come up with A Commerce of Moments. This is a well-intended book I am sure, but it is as dry as a martini in the hands of a very tailored gentleman waiting for his date. Honestly, I tried to pour through this book and find a juicy tidbit to share with you but found I couldn’t. Hate me if you will but I just couldn’t. With arms flailing in the breeze, I can’t help but wonder where has the time gone.
The cost of this book is: $12.00
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Pavement Saw Press PO BOX 6921 Columbus, OH 43206
www.pavementsaw.org
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A Review of The Numbers by Gordon Massman
The Numbers is an entertaining read in the fact that it is a bit inconspicuous. The words are laid out in one big paragraph so you must sit down and focus on the reading or you will lose track of what you are feeling. Was this done on purpose? There are lines amidst the mix that will rise above the others while some others barely show any signs of life. As I have said several times before any book is worth reading, you just have to judge for yourself. That is an important thing to remember when investigating any form of art. By saying this am I saying that The Numbers is a work of art? Yes, is it the kind of art you would hang on your wall or place on a shelf? You decide.
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Pavement Saw Press PO BOX 6291 Columbus, OH 43206
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I really, really enjoyed reading Real To Reel. By saying that am I saying you should give it a read? Yes, I am also saying buy the damn book, if only for the short piece entitled, Male Lead. Male Lead has got to be one of the funniest pieces I have read in quite a long time. The full title is, “Male Lead (as narrated by Keanu Reeves during an “Inside the Actor’s Studio” interview) it is absolutely priceless. But the best offering in Real To Reel is entitled, Representation. A quote from the beginning of the piece,
“This is the story of a woman who is unknown to me. It is the only story I can bring myself to tell. It is a nexus wherein the larger unbearable narrative of things breaks down into bits and pieces like snow or blood.”
Lida Yuknavitch teaches fiction writing and literature in Oregon I learn from the back of the book. What a gift it is to enjoy a teacher who can actually write like someone else other than what the curriculum demands.
The cost of this book is: $13.95
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Fiction Collective Two Florida State University C/o English Department Tallahassee, Fl 32306-1580
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In poem #32, Rodney Koeneke writes,
“Just as the phallus devolves into a crocus Or a tower in which the old woman’s grandchildren Might live, so does the stodgy mulatto At last learn to swivel in the captain’s chair And insists on your presence tonight at dinner Near the bowspirit, towards the wake.”
The poetry of Rodney Koeneke is good as poetry, but as fiction it is splendid. Resembling the writing of a few before him, the inclusion of many styles combined in his writing, Mr. Koeneke extends its hand over the crowd and heals as well as it cures. You see the healing is done instantly and the cure takes time. You’ll either be entertained right away or it may come upon you suddenly, but it will come. Under these sheets is the pulsing heart of a winter strong enough to cool the summer air.
The cost of this book is: $12.00
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Pavement Saw Press PO BOX 6291 Columbus, OH 43206
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A Review of Luminarias, Familiar Hinges by Shelia E. Murphy
When I think of the writing of Shelia E. Murphy, I always reflect back to the words of Pete Townshend’s song, Stop Hurting People. The lines I think of are these,
“The truth confronts you – the truth confronts you as the sea Crushing without detail, Impassioned and detached.”
Shelia E. Murphy’s writing is as honest as the truth you never seem to find anywhere else. Well, not many places. A beautiful excerpt from Luminarias, Familiar Hinges,
“Left on a passage north Transitioned to a left Coast glottal as the coarse, Wide, strapping sea”
Disappearing into the inky blackness of a uncontrollable demon such as the sea, we can sense the path taken in this passage. As brilliant as a sunrise over the crest of a wave, as secure in its unknowing as a miscalculated reading of the skies. Shelia E. Murphy, more than most, opens my heart to the ever so subtle placement of words on the printed page.
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Wild Honey Press 16a Ballyman Road Bray County Wicklow Ireland
ISBN 1 903090 26 1
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A Review of Their Shadows Are Dark Daughters by Naton Leslie
In the poem, Stone Sonata Naton Leslie writes,
“Let Jericho stand, my God. Allow me to stand the hail Of history, the soft rain, A nepenthe of erosion
Let us throw stones when we can no longer do so with bombs, accusations.”
Written in the voice of a period not long since past, Their Shadows Are Dark Daughters is a unique piece of history that along with man’s insane array of weaponry dispenses with itself in a cloud of halos. Both passing one another, up or down. . Much in the tradition of a composer being asked to compose a piece of music for a coronation or a birth, this book is in the guise of a specialized volume; a very nice work.
The cost of this book is: $5.00
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Pavement Saw Press PO BOX 6291 Columbus, OH 43206
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A Review of Dahlia’s Iris by Leslie Scalapino
In the words of Ms. Scalapino, “Dahlia’s Iris is a novel with interior streaming off of it. It is both part of my Secret Autobiography, which follows it, and a contemplation of the Tibetan form that is their written tradition of Secret Autobiography, which is not the chronological events of one’s life but one’s life seeing.” This is an experimental book, with an animated plot, and a brief respite from your normal reading life. Now having said that I can get to what I really wanted to say. This is a helluva fun read. Dahlia’s Iris is like juggling the spices before the meal to see which lands in the stew or the glass of wine. It will sure be an interesting meal. Tasty too.
The cost of this book is: $13.95
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Fiction Collective Two Florida State University C/o English Department Tallahassee, FL 32306-1580
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A Review of Tell Christian I’m Sorry by Mike Smith
“When you’re growing up in a small town when you’re growing up in a small town you say, No one famous ever comes from here.”
- Lou Reed
Tell Christian I’m Sorry is a pretty good story written by a pretty good writer. There’s nothing extraordinary here but it will find an audience that I am sure of. I imagine that the pain and discomfort suffered by the author will be distracted only by the close friends of his that manage to read the manuscript and can discuss it. He writes, “I can see now that I made a difference, but I couldn’t see it then. It made me sick to my stomach.” Nothing hurts more than life and it is constantly there to remind you that even upon escape the fun has just begun.
The cost of this book is: $12.00
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting: Wasteland Press Louisville, KY USA www.wastelandpress.com www.tellchristian.com
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A Review of Meditations at the Edge of a Dream by Beatrix Copello
Diane Ackerman writes, “One job of the unconscious is to act as a workshop for rough-shaping ideas; crafting notions as new parts or tools become available; storing observations until something relevant appears in the landscape- generally soaking, simmering, and incubating ideas.” The unconscious is our only filter to the moment just before losing control. To edit that splendid event is a crime due to humanity and its lust for perfection and understanding. I’m afraid what Beatrix Copello has done is such an event. I’m sure in a notebook, or hard drive, there are some brilliant notes of these poems, which were ransacked and beaten into “shape.” Upon every cliff we find a choice. We can jump, or we can turn back. Maybe sometimes we should jump, you never know, you just might make it to the other side.
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Glass House Books An imprint of Interactive Publications Pty Ltd Treetop Studio Carindale, Queensland Australia 4152 sales@interpt.com http://www.interpr.com.au
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A Review of Improvisations Book 3 by Vernon Frazer
In LXIII, he writes, “A sonnet destitute/if read as dodecaphonic caterwauling.” That’s the kind of beauty you can expect from Mr. Frazer in this new burst of creativity he has unleashed upon the reading public. Always entertaining, provoking and interesting, Mr. Vernon Frazer stands apart from the crowd, if the crowd does actually realize he is there. In each volume Mr. Frazer commits to the regime and as in silence he awakes you to the tunes being played just off the beaten path where the dust is unsettled.
The cost of this book is: $12.50
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
Beneath The Underground 568 Brittany L Delray Beach, FL 33446
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A Review of Requiem by Joan Metelerkamp
I’ll say this about Requiem; I have used it in my own writing. I don’t think a writer can praise a book anymore than that. I picked up Requiem the past couple days and peered through it for a word, a bit of inspiration. It does inspire. A very touching section of the poem, Last Day,
“We sat in the sun talking, your eldest son and I, photographs, on the table, art, worlds, words between us, and you, slightly to the side of us, working with a silence we couldn’t hear”
That’s just beautiful. A chair places itself on the floor by its mere presence and you sit in it without thinking. Everything in the room becomes familiar. That is what good writing is. You sink into it and you are comfortable, herald Requiem as one of those moments.
You can acquire a copy of this book by contacting:
www.deepsouth.co.za contact@deepsouth.co.za Back
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