NH Poetry: Evidence that We Are Descended from Chairs

John-Michael Albert recommends Evidence that We Are Descended from Chairs by Andrew Merton (Accents Publishing, Lexington KY, 2012)

"I go to a lot of poetry readings and read a great deal of contemporary poetry besides; Merton's work stands out. First of all, there's an attractive humility and cleanness to his writing, which he learned through his years as a columnist for the Boston Globe. Then, there is his sexegenarian's take on themes and issues that preoccupy us in our lives, how they all boil down to death, and how Death isn't half as scary as It would like us to think It is. As you might assume from the title, the book is larded with surrealism. But it's not the petulant, youthful surrealism we might associate with the "angry young men" of the early 20th century. There is a lot of imagery that grows naturally from the poets bipolar disorder and various treatments for it (including electric shock therapy). His is the wisdom that has, if you want the opinion of a fellow sexagenarian, surrendered the impulse to make order of a chaotic universe. He has witnessed the most unexpected things in the most unlikely places and is prepared to report it." --John-Micheal Albert

John-Michael Albert, 8th Portsmouth Poet Laureate, has recently published The Bird Catcher, New and Selected Poetry (Moon Pie Press, 2012 and Cardamom Cravings, Notes for an Autobiography (Sargent Press, 2012)

This post is part of our celebration of National Poetry Month 2013 for which I asked New Hampshire poets and booksellers to recommend books of poetry by Granite State poets. These titles are generally available from local booksellers and may be held in public libraries as well.