Poetry AWP and a Small Press Europe Central

Next week I am going to AWP with Bill Allegrezza my partner in Cracked Slab Books to launch our first title Edging by Michelle Noteboom. This is such an interesting book and I hope that
people will like it? It is a compelling work and I normally do not like Body oriented poetry as I am uncomfortable with these things but this book is really interesting. AWP is an interesting gathering on so many levels while it is a literary event it really feels more like a tradeshow.

Most of the room is angling to get something out of someone and those who go into the week thinking otherwise are deluding themselves. The part I like the best is the book fair and seeing old friends. When AWP was in Chicago two years ago I was able to get a publisher for my book-- a great day.

Recently on the Chicagopoetry.blogspot.com we have been discussing "Experimental poetry" in Chicago which sounds like a mid 1970's play don't you think? I have to say that when you list out the poets writing here who are of interest it is quite a grouping. I also think that it is impressive because of the fact that there are few institutions here to support a community. Having said this I think that sometimes poets delude themselves into thinking what they are doing really has an impact. I find that American poets are so profoundly Whitmanesque. " I celebrate and sing myself" that they have a hard time moving beyond their own worlds.

I have been reading the novel Europe Central which I have found totally engrossing. I am on page 50 and we have already spent time with Kathe Kollwitz and Anna Akhmatova. I find this book engrossing because of the fact that he weaves history and poetry together to create a really interesting narrative. This is something I find missing in American poetry. I look at poetry in other languages or at other times and there is a sense of mission and transcendence that is not in existance today- and then I remember that there are some poets working this way-

I absolutely loved Garin Cycholl's new book along with Chris Glomski's Eleni Sikeliano's California poem was excellent as well so maybe I am wrong to yearn for big history in poems?