From the Fishouse: An Anthology of Poems that Sing, Rhyme, Resound, Syncopate, Alliterate, and Just Plain Sound Great [Paperback]

Camille T. Dungy (Editor), Matt O'Donnell (Editor), Jeffrey Thomson (Editor), Gerald Stern (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 19, 2009

An astounding compilation of verse from the Web's most cutting-edge poetry archive, including an audio compact disc.

From the Fishouse (fishousepoems.org) is a leading on-line audio archive of contemporary poetry that focuses on emerging poets who pay particular attention to the sounds and rhythms of their work. This winning anthology of 175+ poems from the site is a festival of verse at its acoustic best.

The book is divided into ten playful sections. Each one, named for a poem within it, underscores the Fishouse modus operandi of showcasing poetry's aural and rhythmic possibilities. For example, "In the Romantic Longhand of the Night" contains poems that work in or around traditional forms, while "The Barrel Is Surely Coming Down the Hill" is comprised of poems that gain momentum as they move. These sections lend a structure to the book that is at once easygoing and enlightening.

In addition, the anthology contains these exciting features: a compact disc with unforgettable recitations of many of the printed poems; a foreword by Gerald Stern, which delves into how poetry's aural traditions are producing such cutting-edge new work; lively excerpts from the site's Q&A's with the poets; and a cross-referenced index of the poems' technical and stylistic traits.

Contributors to the anthology include many of the best new writers in America, among them Adrian Blevins, Gabrielle Calvocoressi, Tina Chang, Paul Guest, Matthea Harvey, James Hoch, Major Jackson, Ilya Kaminsky, Dana Levin, Cate Marvin, Patrick Rosal, Tracy K. Smith, and Brian Turner. Along with dozens of others, these poets make the From the Fishouse anthology a who's who of today's most dynamic versifiers.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Camille T. Dungy is Associate Professor of Creative Writing at San Francisco State University.

Matt O'Donnell is founder and Executive Director of From the Fishouse, based in Pittston, Maine.


Jeffrey Thomson is Associate Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Maine in Farmington.


Gerald Stern the author of sixteen poetry collections, has won the National Book Award, the National Jewish Book Award, the Ruth Lilly Prize, and the Wallace Stevens Award, among others. He lives in Lambertville, New Jersey.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Persea (May 19, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0892553480
• ISBN-13: 978-0892553488
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #179,231 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sounds rule, February 28, 2011

By 

N. Wong (HONG KONG, HONG KONG Hong Kong) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: From the Fishouse: An Anthology of Poems that Sing, Rhyme, Resound, Syncopate, Alliterate, and Just Plain Sound Great (Paperback)

It is impossible to like every poem included in an anthology. Having said this, what an anthology does is to include a rich variety of works that allows readers to judge on their own. From the Fishouse has exactly served this purpose by including a wide range of poems that appeal to us through the sounds, diction, forms and craft. Some of the poems in the book are followed with the poets' opinions on the piece, canon and craftsmanship. Some of which are eye-opening, humorous and resonant to writers who feel they have read enough. And of course, the book comes with a CD that contains tracks of poets' reading of their own works, which could allow readers to feel and appreciate the musicality embedded between the lines.

What I like most about the book is its indexing. Since it is hard to pigeon hole a poem into just one category, the editors are considerate enough to indicate the obvious techniques employed in every poem and rearrange them in the end-of-book index. Say you are a teacher and you want to make use of a poem that makes use of long vowels for your own teaching, the list will help you to locate the right works. It's so convenient.

Though the poems are gathered in this anthology mainly because they all emphasize the oral nature of poetry, meaning is not sacrificed. Some of my favorite lines include: "And me with my Voice, projecting nostalgia/ onto strangers" (Charles Flowers' "The Way We Were", p. 37), "Once, I pressed my ear/ against a doorframe in Iowa./ Picture a lover fresh from his beloved/ trying hard to become a doorframe/ through which that beloved will walk and even sleepwalk. Listen." (John Poch's "Jorie Graham", p. 84), "Let the pregnant woman hold something of clay in her hand/ for the secret of patience (no secret) is more patience." (Ilya Kaminsky's "Second Ending of the Fairy Tale", p. 90), "... we can't keep our hands off each other/ until we can - " (Matthew Dickman's "Love", p. 151).

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A top pick for fans of poetry anthologies, July 11, 2009

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: From the Fishouse: An Anthology of Poems that Sing, Rhyme, Resound, Syncopate, Alliterate, and Just Plain Sound Great (Paperback)

Tomorrow's poets create classics today with the group anthology "From the Fishouse: An Anthology of Poems That Sing, Rhyme, Resound, Syncopate, Alliterate, and Just Plain Sound Great". Nearly two hundred poems by one hundred poets, it's a fine catalogue of what the world of poetry can expect in the future from this excellent, aspiring stars. The poems are set in Pittson, Maine, but they ring out well through the shared story. "From the Fishouse" is a top pick for fans of poetry anthologies. "Correspondence" by Diana Marie Delgado: Brother, deep in the moth hour and still no altar to speak of./Everyone's got a life they cannot stop. Time passes, nothing survives.//The real me slipped out like a hiccup and Z marooned/himself in the arms of another girl's couch. I have a book for you.//It's about life and a real time G doing it. Mom's fine, breaking/crooked as an eggshell. Dad the same teething crocodile.//I've never seen so much sad architecture. Remember when the field/froze white and Mom tied plastic over our shoes?//This the only place that's ever felt like home. I hope you get this/ letter before lockdown. Or have you learned how to read in the dark?