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Addonizio says it best. “I really like feeling something when I stagger into a poem / & having a place to lie down & cry.”
Writing is like firing a nail gun into the center of a vanity mirrorYou can open any page in this wonderful collection and be moved by a line that's poignant, human, and maybe even hilarious, sometimes all at once. Many lines of her verse are both so obvious and yet revelatory at the same time, as if the author is showing us something we've seen all our lives but in a brand new way. I'm excited to have this on my shelf & look forward to reading it again.
I should preface this by a disclaimer…I do not normally or habitually read poetry. Poetry for me is an experiment to occasionally tentatively check out. Also, I do not normally use the word energy to describe books. Or most things that aren’t physics related, for that matter.So when I say that this poetry collection had a strangely enjoyable energy…it’s unusual, highly unusual.And yet…it did.I’ve never heard of the Finnish art of kalsarikännit, nor do I practice it, and yet if someone must, let
The edge of Dorothy Parker and the grit of Lars von Trier, I really liked this. Useful, satisfying, and soulful.
Night in the CastleI’m not sure what to do about that scorpion twitching on the wallMaybe I should slam it with this book of terrible poetryor just read aloud to it until it dies of a histrionic metaphorbleeding out on the ancient stones in a five-octave ariaIf I get a little drunker I might try to murder it with my sandalI gave up on mercy a while agoThat’s what happens when you live in a castle on an artist’s grantYou look at the late-afternoon Umbrian light smearing itself over the tomato vin...
Oh My God! I want to have Kim Addonizio's babies! lines like:"Right now I feel like a menthol filter. I float face-up in the toilet."make we want to stand up and cheer.
Having studied poetry with Addonizio's book "Ordinary Genius", it was no surprise that I fell in love with her words once again. Her diction is stunning, even from the first poem alone, "Night In The Castle", it's evident that her words are picked with absolute precision. I adored her attention to nature and bugs throughout the collection. Combining this attention to the world and Addonizio's subtle cheeky vulgarness, I thought the works as a whole were entertaining and eye-opening. I can't wait...
These poems seem very well crafted but lack the heart her previous volumes had. I couldn’t connect to any of them (perhaps except “To the Woman Crying Uncontrollably in the Next Stall”) the way I had to almost all the poems in “Tell Me” for example.
It does not at all surprise me that Kim Addonizio compares herself to Bukowski in the title of her memoir, as in everything I've read from her she shares his glorying in the low and rotten and wrong and dissipated, but also shares his central core of hope and love; her cynicism is driven by disappointed hope (of course, since I haven't read that memoir yet, she could also be making a pointed joke about the crappy person Bukowski was. Addonizio seems to effortlessly be able to operate on at least...
Books of poems are hard to rate, but I did like reading these poems. Some were relatable and some I just appreciated the art. I was inspire to try some poems of my own, which is always a nice impact to have. Would love to try reading some of her other work.
There are poetry volumes that will end up being exactly what you were hoping for, delighting and inspiring just the way you imagined when you first sat down to read. Maybe you've purchased the latest by a favorite poet, maybe you've been gifted a new volume from a trusted friend, or perhaps a positive review has raised your expectations about a new work. Now We're Getting Somewhere by Kim Addonizio is one of those books. I could not have been more pleased to discover that my enjoyment of this po...
"I'm going to walk away slowly and not look back.Now we're getting somewhere"--KIm AddonizioI have read a few collections of poetry by KIm Addonizio, whose memoir is entitled Bukowksi in a Sundress (someone had characterized her as such in a review). That works for her, obviously, since she took it as a tltle, a compliment (or confession), and so do I. I love Tell Me and This Thing Called Love, and I very much also like this book; they all call on similar themes: booze, sex, hilarity, despair. S...
In her latest collection, Kim Addonizio examines the confessional mode with a critical eye. In her books Tell Me and What Is This Thing Called Love, she used the confessional, lyric mode to explore the life of speakers who drank hard and loved harder, but in recent years she has pulled back from that style and become more observational about the world, especially in her collections Lucifer at the Starlight and Mortal Trash. In this new book, Now We're Getting Somewhere, she takes her more observ...
Bracing, blazing, wry-laugh-inducing collection from my favorite contemporary poet Kim Addonizio. Worth keeping at your side over the course of the week to consume a few samples from time to time so you don't surf through it in one sitting. A key line: “Writing is like firing a nail gun into the center of a vanity mirror or slowly shaking a souvenir snow-globe of asbestos & shame to quiet an imaginary baby.”Bawdy, skewering, given to drink, Addonizio presents brilliant images in an atmosphere th...
If you expect lyrical poetry, look elsewhere. Addonizio's language is rough, almost vulgar in places. Some of the poems sound autobiographical; some seem to draw from real experiences to draw a fictional picture; most of them are liberally watered with alcohol. There are powerful images and emotions and yet... they left me almost cold. In her autobiography, Addonizio compares herself to Bukowski and this collection proves that - Bukowski's style had always been alien to me and Addonizio's work r...
A 2021 volume of firebrand, irreverent, risky poetry bythis Oakland, CA poet and writer. She co-authored twoexceptional poetry guide books that are very clever andhelpful. Her memoir is called Bukowski in a Sundress togive you a flavor of her work. Fun and provocative to read.
Are we really? In any proper analysis the title belies the emptiness of content of this book.
Kim Addonizio is a one of a kind poet; fearless, authentic, precise, charming, comedic, dark and gloomy all mixed into a unique voice and style. It's some of the many reasons why I appreciate her work.She writes with bluntness that can be shocking when you're not expecting it, especially some of the word choices or imagery, and she writes with a dark edge that can send a poem plummeting to an intense yet satisfying end.I love everything she does, and in this collection she seems to take on a mor...
I've been pretty cool on Addonizio's work in the past, including seeing her read and thinking there wasn't much to it. But this volume, up till the last section, really worked for me.... Addonizio has a direct POV and a clear voice, one that's willing to use adjectives to make sure she's not fucking around, and she gives it to you straight. There are lots of poem-length metaphors here (not quite conceits), and this allows her to extend the reach of her observations and to elevate them. These are...
Reminds me of Kate Baer, at least in style. Love Addonizio's perspective and honesty!