Friday, 3 June 2022

BOOK REVIEW: NO DESTINATION BY TOHM BAKELAS

 



"Tohm is a punk rock poet in every sense. His poems do not hide behind any veil, they are open and honest, raw, and real"

Not my words, the words of a review of this book that I stole off Amazon. Because fuck Amazon. But also, because they're a perfect description of Tohm and his poetry. And also, fuck Amazon. No Destination, published last year by Kung Fu Treachery Press, is a collection of Tohm's work gathered from several long since sold out chapbooks, plus a generous selection of new poems thrown in for good measure.

Full disclosure: one of the aforementioned chapbooks was a split with myself, and Tohm is a buddy of mine, so you can take this review with a big fucking pinch of salt, if you want to. However, that doesn't mean that anything that I say in this review is untrue. I would never blow smoke up anyone's ass, and I would never write a BS review just because a book is by a friend. If I didn't like it, I wouldn't review it (to every writer friend whose books I have not yet reviewed, who are now wondering whether or not I liked your book, you'll just have to wait and see).

Tohm is very critical of his own work, and took this opportunity to re-work some of the older poems that appear in the book. I have been reading Tohm's work for a number of years, and own many of the chapbooks that were featured in No Destination, but reading them all again in quick succession, you can really see the progression. He grows, not only as a poet, but as a man, before your very eyes. Tohm's greatest skill is being able to balance the morose, me against the world, sadness with wit and humour. It is a balancing act that not many poets manage to pull off. But don't take my word for it, buy the damn book.


eight years of filth

cleaning
eight years of
filth from the car floor,
dashboard, windows,
and rearview mirror
with cleaning wipes
that indicate:
'no residue or crud left behind'

i find it parallels my marriage -
however, in both cases
the wipes lied.


Pick up the paperback from via Between Shadows Press HERE.

Read Tohm's poem 'Life Is The Ultimate Fix' in PAPER AND INK #17 HERE.

Thursday, 31 March 2022

BOOK REVIEW: THE ONLY LIVING GIRL IN CHICAGO BY MALLORY SMART



Well well well, holy fucking shit! It has been a long damn time since I posted anything on here, huh? I have not written a book review in almost two years. There are a several reasons for this: the world caught fire, I couldn't be bothered, and strangers kept asking me to review their books and I got sick of turning them down. ALAS! The world may still be on fire (a dumpster fire raging even more ferociously than it was in 2020), and strangers may once again start asking me to review their shitty books, however, I CAN BE BOTHERED AGAIN! Bothered to read, bothered to write, and bothered to share my bullshit opinions with the world wide internet once more. REJOICE, for I have returned. Or whatever. Here's a review...

Mallory Smart's The Only Living Girl In Chicago is really like no other book I have read. In the best possible way. Its story is simple - the protagonist, Zoe Clark, is almost 30 and doesn't really have her shit together yet, and kind of hates her life, so decides to move back home to Chicago in an attempt to remedy those things.

This isn't your standard coming-of-age bullshit though, because real life don't be like that. You don't suddenly just figure things out because one day you decided you need to. Sometimes life just happens and takes you along for the ride with it. That is what I love most about this book - it is real. It is possibly the realest book I have ever read, or perhaps, being a millennial, I just relate to it more than any other book I have read. I mean, for real, if you dislike millennials then this book, and I can not stress this enough, IS NOT FOR YOU. You'll legit hate it.

Smart's prose is so free and loose, it almost reads like a stream of consciousness, but for the Twitter generation. Vignettes of a lost soul, traversing the city of Chicago fuelled only by coffee, prescription meds and the knowledge that life is essentially pointless. There is no sugar coating the bad stuff, the embarrassing stuff, the mental health stuff, and you're not constantly being hit over the head with some moral of the week bullshit that you sometimes get in books like this. I would say that this is the closest to a "mumblecore" movie of any novel I have read. I get that mumblecore isn't exactly an up-to-date reference, but if you like movies like Hannah Takes the Stairs, then you'll love this book. I think.

I also love that there is an abridged audiobook version released on cassette, so if you can't be bothered to read the whole book (which you should), then you should check that out via HELLO AMERICA STEREO CASSETTE HERE.

Pick up the paperback directly from the publisher TRIDENT PRESS HERE.

Read Mallory's short story 'ENDTIMES' in PAPER AND INK #17 HERE.

Sunday, 27 September 2020

PUNK AND POETRY PODCAST

For those of you who don't know, I started a podcast about a year ago. Yes, I have jumped on the podcast bandwagon because every other cunt has a podcast already, and I had FOMO. It is called the Paper and Ink Literary Zine Punk and Poetry Podcast. Yes, I am aware of what a long ass title that is. Anyway, the latest episode (Episode 004) has just been uploaded. It features an interview with poet Dave Cullern, music from Liverpool based hardcore anarcho punk band Falaun and poetry from Hosho McCreesh's unabridged audiobook of A Deep and Gorgeous Thirst. You should be able to find it where ever you find your podcasts, but if not, here is a hyperlink: http://anchor.fm/punkandpoetrypodcast


Below is a write up of the episode lifted from Hosho McCreesh's website (which you should check out here). I must also take this moment to make a public apology to Mr McCreesh as, during the episode, I ruminated that he would have a "silky, smooth Texas voice". Of course, Hosh is from New Mexico and not Texas. However I have no doubt to either the silkiness or smoothness of his voice.



Wednesday, 8 April 2020

PANDEMIC POEMS

I don't normally post my poetry up on this blog, but I am making an exception. Before the coronavirus pandemic started I had not written a poem since January. When I sat down to write in March, it was the obvious thing at the front of my mind so what came out were several poems about COVID-19. I wrote them more as a way to get my creative juices flowing and had not planned to publish or submit them anywhere, therefore I am dumping them here on this blog. I don't plan to write any more poems on the subject, and they are unlikely to ever appear anywhere else. Enjoy, or don't. Whatever...




BOOK REVIEW: SHOOTING GALLERY VULTURES BY SCOTT WOZNIAK



"As Americans, we are living in a nation without poetry. As punk rockers, we are living in a scene without poetry. Wozniak has rediscovered this primal form and dragged it through the muck to create a loser's triumph" - Blag Dahlia (singer of punk band Dwarves)

Published at the back end of 2019 by Alien Buddha Press, this graphic illustrated poetry collection is unlike any other you will have come across before. Wozniak's debut collection Crumbling Utopian Pipedream (Moran Press, 2017) was excellent - a tour de force in stripped back, concise, pull-no-punches poetry. Wozniak has an undeniable way with words - he can cut through the fat and get straight to the meat of an issue. You may not always like what he has to say, but you can't deny the finesse with which he tells his tales. Shooting Gallery Vultures steps it up to another level and brings graphic artist Andrew Nutini along for the ride. 

Nutini's artwork is a joy to behold and I would have happily flicked through a book of his work alone, but the stark imagery paired with Wozniak's cutting words are a perfect fit. I am not going to lie to you, much of the content in these poems is bleak as fuck - an up close and personal look at addiction and desperation - and given the current climate (this review being written at the height of a global pandemic) you may find the unrelenting nihilism a challenge, but trust me, the journey is worth it. The existence of this book is a celebration of survival, a celebration of a man's will to live, to keep fighting, and to never throw in the towel.

Get a copy of this fantastic book from Amazon