Saturday, August 27, 2005

A Pocketful of Poesy

Isn't it pretty? This Connection of Everyone With Lungs is the newest book of poetry by Juliana Spahr. I *love* the look and feel of all the books in the NEW CALIFORNIA POETRY SERIES. All the books in the series have this sort of hybrid hard-cover / soft-cover design -- it's like extra-stiff cardstock with a smooth finish and a flap. *So gorgeous.* FYI: J.S. is also the author of the book with perhaps the best title ever: Fuck You - Aloha - I Love You. Also purchased is the American Poets Project edition of Amy Lowell, ed. by Honor Moore. I know some people think they're cheesy (and they're just snobs), but I really love the books from The Library of America. Their size makes them highly portable. Speaking of "cheesy" series, I can't tell you how much I love this. How cool is it that a borzoi -- a sleek and narrow-nosed dog -- is the face of Knopf ? *I loves it.* Anyway, they publish great anthologies that are perfect as gifts. For example, On Wings of Song, a collection of poems about birds, is really elegant (and as Emily Dickinson says, "there is no frigate like a book"*). And my personal fave? Of course it's Animal Poems. Just take a taste of the copy from their catalogue:


And these books are really pretty too! And they come with a slender ribbon bookmark! How can you resist? I've given many of these as gifts. Everyone loves a beautiful book that's filled with beautiful words. And this series is thoughtfully edited. There is even an anthology for the foodies.

*forgive me for linking to a bowlderized version of E.D.'s poem. I need to find a better web-source for her work.

**and even Bono thinks that you should have a poem in your pocket.

1 comment:

rockslinga said...

elka wrote a funny article about the poem in the pocket for kitchen sink. did you see it?

i love hybrid hard/paperbacks myself. egyptian presses are making them a lot lately.