Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
My brother recommended this one, a collection of poems where Minnis' first acknowledgement is to Turner Classic Movies.... Minnis is writing a kind of poem here, mostly 35 live poems, broken into five line stanzas where each line stands on its own, as some sort of nuts declarative sentence in the voice of a femme fatale addressing the dummy who's fallen for her. So there's a lot of 1940s talk about sex, chandeliers, champagne, and punches to the face.
Others have noted that the three sections of the book maybe chart the progress of this mutually abusive relationship-- Minnis is really in control in section 1, and in the 3rd, she wants the relationship to continue even if the other partner has lost some interest. But I'm not sure that's a reading that is especially rich. To me, the book is maybe best a poem at a time, or even a line at a time, as Minnis kind of smashes one hard boiled sentence against another, often non-sequitors, and seeing what sparks result. They might make you cringe, maybe you'll laugh, etc, but there's something here, to be sure.
Others have noted that the three sections of the book maybe chart the progress of this mutually abusive relationship-- Minnis is really in control in section 1, and in the 3rd, she wants the relationship to continue even if the other partner has lost some interest. But I'm not sure that's a reading that is especially rich. To me, the book is maybe best a poem at a time, or even a line at a time, as Minnis kind of smashes one hard boiled sentence against another, often non-sequitors, and seeing what sparks result. They might make you cringe, maybe you'll laugh, etc, but there's something here, to be sure.
Bukowski coded.
Not totally my bag but I was entertained.
Not totally my bag but I was entertained.
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
While I enjoy the subtle references to Old Hollywood, I find this book to be very boring. The author just says the same things over and over. If you take a shot every time the author uses the words diamonds, champagne, tears, darling, baby, and money, you’ll be dead from alcohol poisoning before you get to the end. The world of Old Hollywood is rich and deep, and I find this book to be very shallow. Nothing happens, nothing is revealed, nothing is reflected upon, and nothing is learned by either the narrator or reader. You could pick any star from 1929-1965 and find at least one fascinating tale. Even Kay Francis, known for being both shallow and glamorous, was a party girl with a troubled past, which is full of interesting stories. The fact that these poems are supposedly inspired by Old Hollywood is the only reason I finished the book because I wanted to see how many more references I could find. At least the book is short. I was able to finish it in a few hours, and I’m a slow reader.
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Classism
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Minnis develops such a specific, refined tone in this collection-think Ashbery, but laser-focused on the sort of wealth-obsessed, white-privileged, trashy high-society woman in an abusive relationship that someone like Lana Del Rey has worked on in a different medium. Being as it is poetry, there's a bit more separation from the self than Del Rey provides, which means its a bit less complicated to approach these poems on their own terms. I really applaud Minnis for her dedicated work here, and I also appreciate Wave Books' spaced out approach to the construction of the book- each poem taking up 6-8 pages with each getting a separate title page and two stanzas per page at most, which not only abets the spacey tone but also prevents each poem, as similar as some of them can feel, from cramping together in a more conventional 80 page volume. I do think that it became a little wearing to read these one after another, which is why I took so long to finish this book, only picking it up and reading a few every once and a while, but that shouldn't indicate a decline in quality over the individual poems or the poet. Good stuff!
This book is so extremely *me*. By that I don’t mean it’s anything like my poetry, because most of my poetry is very different from this book. I mean the persona in this book is like my persona (particularly when I’m performing/meeting new people) and that it’s relevant to my interests. But enough about me, darling. These poems are fun to read until a line catches you and throws a drink in your face. But baby, even that’s fun if you know what’s good for you.
medium-paced