Category: Literary Arts

REVIEW: Paul Lisicky at Literati

Natalie Steers Leave a comment

Friday evening Paul Lisicky read from his book The Narrow Door: A Memoir of Friendship at Literati. I went to the event curious, having heard good things about the book but not having read either the memoir or any other of Lisicky’s writings. But I’m always looking for a chance to visit Literati. 

The atmosphere was relaxed and cozy; an atmosphere Literati strives to cultivate and almost always seems to achieve. There was a combination of students and older non-students in attendance. Paul Lisicky started the evening by reading a good section from the beginning of his book. I always enjoy hearing writers read their own works; it adds an extra element, listening to the inflection that they imagined it being read with when they wrote it. Lisicky’s language is both vivid and at times impressionistic (in the best way). There was something very poetic about his word choices and the vignette style in which the book is structured added to this effect.

Lisicky’s latest work is a story about his friendship with a fellow writer Denise, who dies from cancer, and his relationship with his ex-husband. Listening to the few pages Lisicky read for us on Friday, they held an interesting mix of very  the personal and the larger world.

Following his reading, he sat down and had a guided conversation with Sarah Messer, who also happens to teach at the University of Michigan and is my current poetry teacher. They discussed the process of writing this memoir. He explained how it was a very different experience from most of his works, which are fiction novels. This nonfiction called for a different style. Especially since he started writing it so close after the events of Denise’s death and his breakup. When asked by an audience member how he decided where to stop the story, he said it had kind of fallen into place. He also mused that if he wrote this story later, the make-up, what he included and what he didn’t, would probably change because as he said, “the everything is changeable”. It depends on time and context.

The Narrow Door is for sale at Literati and other booksellers such as Amazon. It’s sure to be an emotional and touching story told with masterful beautiful images of some difficult moments in his life. Myself, I can’t wait to read it!

 

REVIEW: Helen Zell Visiting Writers Series with Anne Carson

Jeannie Sandefer Leave a comment

When I walked into the UMMA on Thursday night, I was instantly reminded of last March, when Kazuo Ishiguro held a reading of his then-recent novel The Buried Giant. Then, I felt as if I was plunged into an environment that was larger-than-life, sitting under the high ceiling of the main foyer. But when I went down to the basement and entered the auditorium where Anne Carson would be reading, I felt the exact opposite; chatter abounded throughout the room, but the lights were muted, closing the room and making it feel small and warm.

If I was to characterize the reading as a whole, then, that’s what I’d say: small, warm, intimate, and most importantly, enchanting. From the introduction praising her amazing body of work to her actual reading, I was completely entranced. She wasn’t an intimidating figure, but quite the opposite. She even joked, in a very dry, but still somewhat kind tone, “I’ll try to be stream-worthy.” I felt nothing but warmth and welcome emulating from her as she introduced her work, titled “An Essay on Threat,” and began to read.

As for the work itself, I must steal from the eloquent introduction Jenny Boychuk. She described Carson as “unclassifiable” and quoted a national critic who deemed her a “philosopher of heartbreak.” Those two thoughts encapsulate her writing perfectly. If you asked me to describe “An Essay on Threat,” which came in three parts, one long, one very long, and one very short, I honestly wouldn’t have an answer. I don’t even know if there was solid plot that I could identify. Instead, I was mesmerized in listening to the writing, delighting in how poetic her prose sounded. Rather than narrating with a direct plot she fills your imagination for you, each salient detail immersing you into the world she created.

I know I don’t speak only for myself when I say I left the reading changed, challenged, and moved. Changed, because after hearing her read, I will never read her work the same way ever again. Challenged, because when she asked all the writers to raise their hands, I wanted to someday be the one asking that question from the stage, which means learning from great writers like her and developing my own craft. And, finally, moved.

“My heart is swimmed in time.” – Anne Carson

 

The next author in the Visiting Writer’s Series, NoViolet Bulawayo, will be at the UMMA Helmut Stern Auditorium on Thursday, February 11, at 5:30 pm.

PREVIEW: Helen Zell Visiting Writers Series with Anne Carson

Jeannie Sandefer Leave a comment

As part of the Helen Zell Visiting Writers Program, Literati Bookstore is bringing in Anne Carson, author of The Autobiography of Red, red doc>, and Eros the Bittersweet. If you’ve never read any of her writing, she typically retells classic myths in long-form poetry. As a previous professor at the University of Michigan, it’s an honor to have Anne Carson come speak.

Where: UMMA Helmut Stern Auditorium
When: Thursday, January 21, 2016, 5:30pm
Tickets: Free, but currently sold out. You MUST have a ticket to get into this event.

For more information about Anne Carson and this event, visit the Literati Website.

REVIEW: Poetry Slam feat. Kevin Kantor

kebishop Leave a comment

As this was my first poetry slam, I didn’t know what to expect.  I was really excited to get some inspiration for my own poetry reading coming up next week, and to see the slam’s featured poet: Kevin Kantor.  I definitely wasn’t disappointed!  (Note: I’m sorry for any misspellings that might occur, as I couldn’t find a program!)

First, there was an open mic.  The open mic wasn’t a part of the slam competition, so it was really relaxed.  First, Meg read a piece to her mom for her birthday, which was sweet all on its own.  She used phrases like, “You made staying at home a Ph. D. degree” and “My rose of a mother, you taught me to see.”

Marlin was next, and he surprised me a couple lines into his poem when he slipped into a very Eminem-esque rhythm.  Marlin had beautifully-written phrases such as: “We know that the skyline would be dark without us” and “We are the gravity that makes the snow stick.”  Amazing.

After Marlin was Alyssa, who later ended up winning third place in the poetry slam!  She had an awesome stage persona, and one of my favorite quotes from her piece was, “If you force me to buy my mean plan, you’re not a salesman, you’re a politician.”

League Underground

The entire open mic was really thought-provoking, and it was a great introduction for Kevin Kantor.  He came onstage next, and he was immediately winning the audience over with his easy jokes and unique personality.  He flew all the way from Florida.  He read a few poems from his chapbook (which I bought, and you can look at it here).  He had countless iridescent quotes, and here are some of my favorites:

  • “You taught me how to look at a seed and see a flower.”
  • “I am not a hopeless romantic.  I am a poet, and poets aren’t hopeless anythings.”
  • “12.) I’m sorry I’ve not yet forgotten how to find you beautiful.  13.) I’m trying.”

After Kantor, it was time for the poetry slam to start. Judges were established and Alyssa went first.  Her poem was a powerful reflection on modern feminism.  One of the lines in her poem was: “I am not for decoration.  I have purpose.” That, as you can imagine, won her a lot of appreciative snaps.

Sharon went next, and her poem was inspired by the movie, Inside Out.  It was wonderfully written, and very creative.  Eilene was after Sharon, and her poem about racism in America won first place!

Chris won second place with his poem about perseverance.  “I’m the diamond who mined itself,” was one of his most memorable lines.

The last poet was Meg, who also wrote about gender equality.  “Women are half the nation,” she observed, and “me and my parts deserve more.”  Snaps to that.

The Grand Slam will take place on January 9th.  I definitely recommend checking it out!

PREVIEW: Poetry Slam feat. Kevin Kantor

kebishop

As a member of LHSP’s poetry club, I’m really excited to finally attend a poetry slam!  In the first ten minutes of every poetry club meeting, we watch a poem.  One of my favorite performances was Takara’s “Poet Breathe Now.”  My poetry club is also having a recital soon, and I hope to gain some inspiration for my own poetry from attending tomorrow night’s slam.

After doing some research on Kevin Kantor, I’m even more excited!  According to his website, “Kevin Kantor is a director, actor, performance poet, and teaching artist.  Kevin hold a bachelor’s degree in acting from the University of Northern Colorado, where he founded and acted as artistic director of SOAPbox Productions, a student-run theatre company and spoken word poetry venue dedicated to producing projects believed to be socially relevant, culturally conscious, and politically engaged (GO THEATRE FOR SOCIAL CHANGE!).”  I’m really looking forward to hearing the messages in Kantor’s poetry and also learning from the way he delivers them.

Check out the UMich slam poetry team’s tumblr page to see their full schedule and more information about them.  The slam begins tomorrow night at 6pm in the League Underground.

REVIEW: Poetry at Literati: Sarah Freligh

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I attended the Sarah Freligh reading at Literati Bookstore on Friday evening. Freligh recited poems from her newly-released and critically-acclaimed collection of poems entitled Sad Math. The collection won the Moon City Poetry Award last year.

Here is a review of Sad Math by author Mark Irwin: “Sarah Freligh’s Sad Math is nothing less than a marvelous arc that captures and explores what it means for all sentient beings to age and find the unreasonable sum of years. Her feminist view heightens the notion of sacred disfigurement as we realize that language can never properly add or assess our grief.” Ultimately, the poems within Sad Math assessed death, grief, and the past.

The atmosphere of the event was decidedly lighthearted. The poet seemed comfortable throughout the event despite the at-times gloomy nature of her poems. Freligh commented that some of her family members were seated in the audience. In-between readings Freligh would contextualize her poems with stories and various musings.

Near the beginning of the event she commented that she often mixes fictional elements with elements from her past. Indeed, many of Freligh’s poems concerned her past and her childhood, such as the characters involved in her high school memories. But not all poems concerned death and the past. For example, one poem humorously focused on her lovingly-depicted cat and elicited laughs from the audience. Additionally, the former-smoker often nostalgically featured smoking as a reoccurring motif within her poems.

Towards the end of the event Freligh mentioned that Garrison Keillor featured the poem, “What I’ve Lost,” on The Writer’s Almanac. Click here to read the written poem itself as well as to listen to the recording of Garrison Keillor reciting the poem.