Rate this book

Poemland (2009)

by Chelsey Minnis(Favorite Author)

4.29 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

1933517417 (ISBN13: 9781933517414)

languge

English

genre

Poetry

publisher

Wave Books

review 1: A really nice, loose-feeling collection of poems that feels somewhere between one long poem with different movements and a collection of very short poems (each page has between four and eight lines on it, all of which end with the same ellipsis). I really enjoyed reading this once I got into the rhythm of it. It's funny and awkward and occasionally sexual and occasionally mundane, but pretty consistently readable and interesting. Definitely a good read and definitely something that warrants a second read at some point.
review 2: Poemland possesses a title the perfectly describes the experience of reading the book. Many of the poems are about writing poetry, reading poetry, and the narrator’s feelings towards poetry. One striking comment Minnis makes in on... moree of her poems is that the book itself is a “very expensive joke.” She comments on her work within her work while letting each poem serve as a poem in itself. This land seems to have its own sense of moral code and a self-conscious belief in dissonance from classical poetry. Many of the poems mock the idea of what a poem should or should not be, how a writer should or should not act, etc. Often these are in jest, though some seem to be directed towards her questioning of her personal beliefs as a writer. Some poems mock the idea of tradition, one, for example, outwardly claims to be a standard poem with standard meaning in just a few short lines. This break from traditional poetry and gives twist on perspective (writing poems about poems) is a refreshing read. A break from tradition is also seen in her uncentered and strange location of the name of the book and the barcode, smack in the middle of the front cover. The fluff behind it becomes comical it shows up in a number of poems within the book. The cover and title truly encompass the work itself. The barcodes and separation pages between sections of the book threw me a little bit, as I am not sure exactly their purpose. In some ways they seem to undermine her writing in itself or suggest that she is selling herself. Maybe this is the point? Especially given her own comment on how expensive her "joke" is. Finally, the outrageous and bizarre out of context lines, random words, and unstructured use of punctuation really does serve to make the entire book an odd but entertaining read. less

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