Bob Holman's the Collect Call of the Wild [Paperback]

Bob Holman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1995

Widely known as "the people's poet," Holman's mission is to set poetry free, to empower the public with language--to make poetry as natural a use for language as ordering a pizza. As Bob says, "The Universal remote control is being passed into your hands. Poetry is the Language of the Future." Author readings.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Poetry activist and co-editor of Aloud: Voices from the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, Holman seeks simultaneously to reconstrue traditional definitions of poetry and to broaden its audience. This collection, an ample grab-bag of poems Holman wrote (and performed) in this decade and the last, testifies to the raw power and irreverent humor of spoken-word poetry but also exemplifies its unevenness and often arbitrary attentions. Many pieces can scarcely, in any standard sense, be called poetry; in its entirety, "My Shirt" reads, "I like to put it on/ My arms get long that way." This is, however, precisely Holman's point?that the confines of poetry are wider than generally thought and that the definition of poetry matters less than the relationship between the poem and the poet (and, ultimately, the audience). This view is underscored in Holman's endnotes, which tellingly are often more engaging than much of the poetry. This is a collection not everyone will like, but it is bound to interest anyone curious about trends in contemporary poetry.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Holman's mission is to liberate poetry from the clutches of the academics and the highbrows. Coeditor of Aloud: Voices from the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, Holman brings poetry to the people on network TV talk shows and is currently directing a PBS program titled The United States of Poetry. In between, he oversees poetry slams and writes everything from silly little ditties to earthy love lyrics, funny yet pretty odes to nature in homage to classic Chinese verse, and, best of all, rapping, ranting, and howlingly funny commentary on our habits of compromise and consumption, futility and denial. "The world is changing," Holman tells us, "but we're not." Smart, sharp, and fast, Holman runs cliches, advertising babble, and other tired remarks through the centrifuge of his liberal, fun-loving, outrageous, sexy, secretly very literary, and compassionate mind, then churns out poetry that makes us laugh, groan, and (that most dangerous of activities) think. Donna Seaman

Product Details

• Paperback: 158 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt & Co (P) (August 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805036725
• ISBN-13: 978-0805036725
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,394,618 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Poetry Collection Ranges From Haikus to Rants, May 16, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Bob Holman's the Collect Call of the Wild (Hardcover)

Poetry lovers who only know Bob Holman as a great poetry activist -- and particularly as the host of the Friday night poetry slams at New York's Nuyorican Poets Cafe -- now have the opportunity to give him his due as a poet. I love "The Collect Call of the Wild" because it demonstrates so much emotional, intellectual, and technical range. How is it possible for the same poet to write delirious political lovesongs to Nelson Mandela and the gentlest, slyest, most musical haikus? Clearly, Holman -- who is given always to extolling the work of other poets -- is too modest. His own work is brilliant, as this book amply demonstrates. Read it and be nourished