keeping it alive and real

Brunel's academic griot will 'fight dead image of poetry'

it's important always to keep it real

new review of Full Moon on K Street

One of the most pleasant things that has come from our experience of publishing Full Moon on K Street is the seemingly unending gush of positives reviews its been receiving, most recently this one: berniE-zine Book Reviews

We are ever so thankful for having been able to make an impact in the Washington DC literary psyche. A footprint by whatever size is still a footprint. Kim Roberts is a marvel, you know?

the typewriter lives on in India

The Typewriter in India. It's refreshing to see that a technology given up for dead has maintained a presence and purpose in India. Much like the commentary that poetry is dead - or dying - or in decline - or on life support; the news of the demise is greatly exaggerated. Poetry isn't going to be center of our culture in the US, in a country where marketplace determines value something like poetry isn't going to be "valued" all that highly. Yet, it doesn't mean its going to go the way of the Dodo bird either.

Great piece on what we do to books in NYT 8/28/11

Reading Life-What We Do to Books

Physics for Poets

it defies words, really

older article praising chapbooks

A friend of mine sent me this earlier this summer, but as it's summer it got lost in the shuffle of the season. It's still valid and still true Poetry Pamphlets by John Greening.

quote from The Razor's Edge by Maugham

I am not the greatest fan of W Somerset Maugham but I was speed reading The Razor's Edge and found this wonderful quote (it rings so so true)

"I thought with melancholy how an author spends months writing a book, and maybe puts his heart's blood into it,
and it lies about unread till the reader has nothing else in the world to do."
page 282

exactly. Bingo. Perfect.

from NPR - Book Business beyond Borders

interesting view of language, courtesy of the NY Times

Poetry, Medium and Message

to our Philly roots

An Independent bookseller in Wayne

Found this article and was touched by the on-going difficulties of independent book sellers in the Philadelphia region. Not surprisingly, Plan B Press was not enamored with the Corporate bookstores that gobbled up the market in Philly in the 1990s. They drove many a fine bookseller out of business, only to be driven out of business themselves by the new behemoth, Amazon. However, some people actually like human interaction and a faceless cyber presence isn't their cup of tea.

Circling back to bookstores with real people in them. Knowledgeable folks. Well-read folks. Bookies, for goodness sake! Praise be to them all!

If you live near Wayne, PA, you should stop in and say hello. For everyone else, support independent book sellers and publishers whenever possible!


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stevenallenmay