Best American Poetry: Reuben Jackson's "November Poem" is Pick of the Week
Terence Winch chooses a fiery Jackson original for Best American Poetry's pick of the week.
Grace Cavalieri says what we are all thinking about Jackson's love song turned murder ballad "November Poem", "This is such an unusual poem for Reuben. Goes to show the man travels places that would thrill an astronaut. He certainly thrills us." And the thrill cuts through every punching line in this poem selected by Terence Winch for Best American Poetry's pick of the week.
Another commentator notes the dream-like, or nightmare-like, aspect of the piece, writing, "What a dream, shifting forward in each well measured line, each pulse, popping with surprise until its end." A poet noted for his realistic depictions of life and love, "November Poem" marks a departure for Jackson which is already garnering attention for its singularness-- while employing the familiar craft for which he is justly renowned.
Read the "November Poem" here. Purchase Reuben's collection Scattered Clouds here.
James J. Patterson’s Junk Shop Window on E. Ethelbert Miller’s On the Margin
By Eylie Sasajima To celebrate the upcoming release of Junk Shop Window: Essays on Myth, Life, and Literature, on June 6, ASP’s James J. Patterson was interviewed on E. Ethelbert […]
Reflections on my First AWP; or, Sleepless in SeaTac
ASP Intern and Washington College Senior Eylie Sasajima on Her First AWP Conference
An interview with the late, great Linda Pastan
Along the indifferent corridors / of space, angels could be hiding,” Linda Pastan wrote in her poem “Muse.” ASP honors the legacy of Linda Pastan (1932–2023), a former Poet Laureate of Maryland, who passed away last week. Pastan was the author of the 2018 poetry book A Dog Runs Through It, which won the Towson University Literary Award.