Close Talking

Connor and Jack continue their dive into the intricacies of the poetic line break this time discussing miming in line breaks. They draw examples from Pierre Joris, James Wright, and Frank O'Hara to close out National Poetry Month 2022 in style! Episode 1 of Line Break Week: https://soundcloud.com/close-talking/episode-157-why-break-a-line-line-break-week-ep-1 Episode 2 of Line Break Week: https://soundcloud.com/close-talking/episode-158-who-will-bring-the-drama-the-line-break-line-break-week-ep-2 Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking 
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Connor and Jack continue their week-long exploration of line breaks in poetry closing out National Poetry Month 2022. Today they focus on how line breaks can build drama in a poem. Do they take a detour into discussing Entourage along the way? Maybe. But that's all part of the drama. The focus on a poem by Tacey M. Atsitty that uses line breaks to create drama throughout. Check out Episode 1 of Line Break Week, here: https://soundcloud.com/close-talking/episode-157-why-break-a-line-line-break-week-ep-1 Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking 
Find us on Twitter at: twitter.com/closetalking
 Find us on Instagram: @closetalkingpoetry You can always send us an e-mail with thoughts on this or any of our previous podcasts, as well as suggestions for future shows, at closetalkingpoetry@gmail.com.

Starting a little later than planned, but it's time for the fourth annual last-week-of-poetry-month Close Talking extravaganza! In past years Connor and Jack have talked about haiku, shared comforting poems, and investigated the sonnet. Now, they take on their grandest subject yet - the line break. They dig into why poets break lines, what makes line breaks so special, and even give examples ranging from Cynthia Cruz and Patrick Cotter to Gwendolyn Brooks. Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking 
Find us on Twitter at: twitter.com/closetalking
 Find us on Instagram: @closetalkingpoetry You can always send us an e-mail with thoughts on this or any of our previous podcasts, as well as suggestions for future shows, at closetalkingpoetry@gmail.com.

Connor and Jack discuss "Beckoned" by living legend Forrest Gander. The poem, from Gander's Pulitzer Prize winning collection "Be With" grapples with grief and loss. In the discussion, Connor and Jack touch on the poem's use of anaphora and use of sound, investigate the ways nature imagery shows up throughout, and even find some stylistic connections between the poem and the current Marvel Disney+ series, Moonknight. Beckoned By: Forrest Gander At which point my grief-sounds ricocheted outside of language. Something like a drifting swarm of bees. At which point in the tetric silence that followed I was swarmed by those bees and lost consciousness. At which point there was no way out for me either. At which point I carried on in a semi-coma, dreaming I was awake, avoiding friends and puking, plucking stingers from my face and arms. At which point her voice was pinned to a backdrop of vaporous color. At which point the crane's bustles flared. At which point, coming to, I knew I'd pay the whole flag-p

Connor and Jack are joined by special guest Caitlin Scarano to discuss the poem "Buttercream" from her new collection THE NECESSITY OF WILDFIRE. The collection won the Wren Poetry Prize, selected by final judge Ada Limón. Scarano discusses the poem, the collection, and the ways her work has taken what she describes as an "environmental turn" since completing THE NECESSITY OF WILDFIRE. She also talks about some of her upcoming projects that blend art with environmental action. Order a copy of the book, here: https://www.blairpub.com/shop/necessity-of-wildfire Learn more about Caitlin Scarano, here:https://www.caitlinscarano.com/ Buttercream By: Caitlin Scarano I cut open an avocado only to find it dappled with rot. I eat it anyway. Because my blood burns, I decide not to have children. My father's father was full of copper. His son, a liver textured with scarring. I ate it anyway. I asked for guidance, not a leash and a collar. I turn my belly inside out - it's dappled with eggs the color of buttercream

Connor and Jack are joined by special guest Michael Kleber-Diggs for a conversation about the Gwendolyn Brooks poem "A Sunset of the City." Michael Kleber-Diggs won the 2020 Max Ritvo Poetry Prize, has been widely published, and teaches poetry through the Minnesota Prison Writers Workshop. In addition to digging into Gwendolyn Brooks' captivating poem, the trio also discuss Kleber-Diggs' new collection "Worldly Things" from Milkweed Editions. Get a copy of "Worldly Things" here: https://milkweed.org/book/worldly-things A Sunset of the City By: Gwendolyn Brooks Kathleen Eileen Already I am no longer looked at with lechery or love. My daughters and sons have put me away with marbles and dolls, Are gone from the house. My husband and lovers are pleasant or somewhat polite And night is night. It is a real chill out, The genuine thing. I am not deceived, I do not think it is still summer Because sun stays and birds continue to sing. It is summer-gone that I see, it is summer-gone. The sweet flowers

Connor and Jack discuss a classic poem by a classic poet - The Snow Man by Wallace Stevens. They talk about something. They talk about nothing. They talk about how the something of the poem perhaps resides in the nothing. Along the way they reference Taskmaster, King Lear, and much more. (Delayed after some technical difficulties!) The Snow Man By: Wallace Stevens One must have a mind of winter To regard the frost and the boughs Of the pine-trees crusted with snow; And have been cold a long time To behold the junipers shagged with ice, The spruces rough in the distant glitter Of the January sun; and not to think Of any misery in the sound of the wind, In the sound of a few leaves, Which is the sound of the land Full of the same wind That is blowing in the same bare place For the listener, who listens in the snow, And, nothing himself, beholds Nothing that is not there and the nothing that is. Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking 
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Connor and Jack discuss the poem I.R.L. by New Zealand poet Chris Tse. They talk about how media representations and creations can cross into reality, the meaning of "gritty," and why S.O.S is so evocative. In the second part of the show they answer a listener question about how to know where to submit poetry. Connor recommends a study with new information about why certain areas are experience more suffering because of the pandemic, and Jack recommends "Reacher" on Amazon Prime, and "Man Like Mobeen" on Netflix. I.R.L. By: Chris Tse In real life you are aging at the rate of a short-lived sitcom and the only kind of loneliness worth laughing about is throwing out half a frozen meal for two because leftovers are never funnier the next day. In real life there is no such thing as a gritty reboot — it’s just fucking gritty all the time, mate, because your best-laid plans are always someone else’s chance to crash a car into the crowd at a men’s rights charity concert. In real life the nice guys pull out o

Connor and Jack discuss the generation melding poem "Hear the Dogs Crying" by Christy Passion. They discuss the power of car radios, the way the language of the poem leaps along with its subject matter, and even arrive at new readings of the last stanza in real time. In the second part of the show, Connor recommends the recent adaptation of "Station 11" and Jack recommends the music of Amyl and the Sniffers and the web series "Sweet Home Ketteringa" hosted by British comedian, James Acaster. Read the full poem below, or, here: https://www.bambooridge.org/renshi/no-choice-but-to-follow/poem/490/ Hear the Dogs Crying By: Christy Passion A recording of her voice, an old woman's voice full of gravel and lead steeped through the car radio. She spoke of gathering limu visitors on ships, and dusty roads in Waianae. In the distance you could almost hear the dogs crying, the mullet wriggling in the fish bag Nostalgic for a tutu I never knew, I feel the ocean pulse inside me waves rolling over, pushing me till I

Connor and Jack celebrate the 150th episode of Close Talking with a classic poem from a living legend - "Dreams" by Nikki Giovanni. They dig into poem's coming-of-age narrative discussing and along the way make musical references galore. Ray Charles and Marjorie Hendrix are just the tip of a harmonious iceberg in this wide-ranging conversation. Learn more about Giovanni, here: https://nikki-giovanni.com/ Read the poem, here (or below): https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48224/dreams-56d229494e255 Dreams By: Nikki Giovanni in my younger years before i learned black people aren’t suppose to dream i wanted to be a raelet and say “dr o wn d in my youn tears” or “tal kin bout tal kin bout” or marjorie hendricks and grind all up against the mic and scream “baaaaaby nightandday baaaaaby nightandday” then as i grew and matured i became more sensible and decided i would settle down and just become a sweet inspiration Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking 
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Connor and Jack discuss Catherine Barnett's beautiful poem "Epistemology." Fittingly for the season of solstice logs, Hannukah bushes, and Christmas trees, this poem - which contemplates the nature of knowing - name checks "The Secret Life of Trees" and considers the aliveness of our arboreal friends. Learn more about Catherine Barnett, here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/catherine-barnett Read the poem, here (or below): https://poets.org/poem/epistemology Epistemology By: Catherine Barnett Mostly I’d like to feel a little less, know a little more. Knots are on the top of my list of what I want to know. Who was it who taught me to burn the end of the cord to keep it from fraying? Not the man who called my life a debacle, a word whose sound I love. In a debacle things are unleashed. Roots of words are like knots I think when I read the dictionary. I read other books, sure. Recently I learned how trees communicate, the way they send sugar through their roots to the trees that are ailing. They d

Connor and Jack discuss a poem from Seema Yasmin's book "If God Is A Virus." They discuss Yasmin's status as a journalist, poet, and medical doctor; the way she weaves her many areas of expertise together in the poem; and what kind of art might one day represent this period of time. Read more about Yasmin, here: https://pulitzercenter.org/people/seema-yasmin Get a copy of "If God Is A Virus" here: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/1636-if-god-is-a-virus Read more poems from the book, here: https://pulitzercenter.org/IfGodIsaVirus If God Is a Virus By: Seema Yasmin She is vexed. Absolutely done with your shit. God wants to know why you didn't get a flu shot; why her minions made your left lung collapse white out on the X-ray, rack up a six-figure ICU bill when all they wanted was a warm vacation tropical waters, champagne plasma to sip - not to bring about death - not to turn prunes in pleural fluid. No body wants that. God thinks anti-vaxxers have a death wish. Wonders how they eat organic, snort cok

In a slight departure from our regular format, Jack offers a brief remembrance of three recently departed poets - Kamilah Aisha Moon, Etel Adnan, and Robert Bly. Links to more information about the poets and to the poems read in the episode are below. Learn more about Kamilah Aisha Moon, here: http://www.kamilahaishamoon.org/ Read Disbelief here: https://poets.org/poem/disbelief Learn more about Etel Adnan, here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/etel-adnan Read an excerpt from The Arab Apocalypse, here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/53855/xliv-from-the-arab-apocalypse Read an excerpt from The Spring Flowers Own here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/53851/from-the-spring-flowers-own-the-morning-after-my-death Learn more about Robert Bly, here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/robert-bly Read "Why We Don't Die" here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/152560/why-we-dont-die Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking 
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In this special episode, Connor and Jack discuss the 2021 National Book Awards - the long list, the finalists, and the winner "Floaters: Poems" by Martín Espada. They dig into an excerpt from the title poem "Floaters" and discuss how it brings urgent attention to issues of immigration and uses narrative to fight against the dehumanizing language often used to describe those seeking a better life in the United States. Listen to the National Book Awards Finalist Reading, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts4YxshQK10 Learn more about Espada, here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/martin-espada Get a copy of "Floaters: Poems" here: https://wwnorton.com/books/9780393541038 Read all of "Floaters" here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/151158/floaters-5d8d0d07466b9 Excerpt from Floaters By: Martín Espada "Ok, I’m gonna go ahead and ask ... have ya’ll ever seen floaters this clean. I’m not trying to be an a$$ but I HAVE NEVER SEEN FLOATERS LIKE THIS, could this be another edited p

Connor and Jack are joined by special guest Dr. Len Lawson, co-editor of the new collection "The Future of Black: Afrofuturism, Black Comics, and Superhero Poetry." just released from Blair Publishing. Together they discuss Lawson's poem "Amanda Waller Suite Episode 3: Amanda Waller Has a Woman-to-Woman with Harley Quinn." They discuss finding the complex human side of characters like Waller, the poem's resonance with Nikky Finney's Condoleezza suite, and how the collection "The Future of Black" came together. Get a copy of "The Future of Black" here: https://www.blairpub.com/shop/the-future-of-black Connor and Jack discuss a poem from Finney's Condoleezza Suite on Episode 73 of Close Talking: https://soundcloud.com/close-talking/episode-073-concerto-no-7-condoleezza-working-out-at-the-watergate-nikky-finney Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking 
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Connor and Jack dive into an iconic poem by an iconic poet - Oodgeroo Noonuccal, also known as Kath Walker, a trailblazing indigenous Australian writer and activist. They discuss the history of racism towards indigenous Australian people, explore the ways the poem plays with perspective, and get a little lost on an environmental tangent about invasive species. Lear more about Oodgeroo Noonuccal, here: https://www.poetrylibrary.edu.au/poets/noonuccal-oodgeroo Read more of her poems, here: https://www.poetrylibrary.edu.au/poets/noonuccal-oodgeroo/poems Learn more about the indigenous peoples of Australia, here: https://aiatsis.gov.au/ We Are Going By: Oodgeroo Noonuccal They came in to the little town A semi-naked band subdued and silent All that remained of their tribe. They came here to the place of their old bora ground Where now the many white men hurry about like ants. Notice of the estate agent reads: 'Rubbish May Be Tipped Here'. Now it half covers the traces of the old bora ring. 'We are as strange

A return to when Connor and Jack explored Fady Joudah's poem "Additional Notes on Tea." They discuss how the poem moves around the globe, how it interrogates history, and engages with the concept of God. Close Talking Ep. 132: Poetry and Palestine - https://soundcloud.com/close-talking/episode-132-poetry-and-palestine UNBOXED Vol 15: Poetry and Palestine - https://us2.campaign-archive.com/?u=fd945ee0dcd8acdc0e3aa0f22&id=1551facf0f Additional Notes On Tea By: Fady Joudah In Cairo a boy’s balcony higher than a man’s deathbed. The boy is sipping tea, The view is angular like a fracture. Surrounding the bed, women in wooden chairs. They signal mourning with a scream. Family men on the street run up the stairs and drink raven tea. On the operating table in Solwezi a doctor watches a woman die. Tea while the anesthetic wears off, While the blade is waiting, tea. The doctor says the woman knows god is sleeping Outside heaven in a tent. God is a refugee dreaming of tea. Once upon a time an ocean married a sea

Connor and Jack discuss a poem by Andrés Cerpa whose book "The Vault" was recently long-listed for the 2021 National Book Award in Poetry. They dive into the short poem "The Nightmare Touched Its Forehead to My Lips" unpacking the ways it describes grief and loss, the meaning of vaults, and spend time on the title, which is also the title of a whole section of "The Vault." Read the poem here (or below): https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/the-nightmare-touched-its-forehead-to-my-lips/ Learn more about Andrés Cerpa, here: https://www.andrescerpa.com/ The Nightmare Touched Its Forehead to My Lips By: Andrés Cerpa For the living, water. And now, you’re all the wells mined for their depth. All of the silence & all of the alls I can conjure. You are not in the living room. You are not in your chair. I drove to the end of the world today. Snow in the forecast, so I left my bicycle & the other half of your ashes at home. Find us at our website: www.closetalking.com/ Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/cl

In this bonus episode Connor and Jack continue their discussion of Don Mee Choi's poem, Shitty KItty. This time they focus on (rant about?) the history of US foreign policy failures, the lack of consequences for the architects of those disasters, and connect the histories that Shitty Kitty surfaces to contemporary struggles. They also share a some from the "Report by the Special Subcommittee on Disciplinary Problems in the US Navy." Listen to the full episode on "Shitty Kitty" here: https://soundcloud.com/close-talking/episode-141-shitty-kitty-don-mee-choi Read the poem, here: www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/90212/shitty-kitty Get a copy of Hardly War, here: www.wavepoetry.com/products/hardly-war Learn more about Don Mee Choi, here: www.donmeechoi.com/ Shitty Kitty By: Don Mee Choi Here comes Shitty Kitty en route to the Gulf of Tonkin or en route to a race riot? That is the question and meanwhile discipline is the keystone and meanwhile did you see on TV helicopters being ditched into the sea? That is a

Connor and Jack discuss Don Mee Choi's "Shitty Kitty" from her 2016 book "Hardly War." They enmesh themselves in the tangled histories the poem explores - racial violence on US Navy ships in the 1970s, massacres committed by South Korean troops in Vietnam - talk about how the poem fits into the wider project of the book, and explore how the poem engages with the theories of Roland Barthes. Read the poem, here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/90212/shitty-kitty Get a copy of Hardly War, here: https://www.wavepoetry.com/products/hardly-war Learn more about Don Mee Choi, here: http://www.donmeechoi.com/ Shitty Kitty By: Don Mee Choi Here comes Shitty Kitty en route to the Gulf of Tonkin or en route to a race riot? That is the question and meanwhile discipline is the keystone and meanwhile did you see on TV helicopters being ditched into the sea? That is also my film and meanwhile all refugees must be treated as suspects. Looking for your husband? Looking for your son? That is the question and meanwhi