Jim and Dave Defeat the Masked Man [Paperback]

David Lehman (Author), James Cummins (Author), Archie Rand (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 8, 2005

The sestina is a traditional poetic form that has enjoyed a recent surge in popularity, which promises to expand further with this witty illustrated cycle of poems. Casting themselves as poetic superheroes, authors Jim and Dave take on Osama Bin Laden and various other rogues and luminaries, defeating the “Masked Man” in the end to the cheering of appreciative crowds at the "sestina bar." As the two sestina-meisters take turns writing individual poems (and collaborating on one together), the mild-mannered bespectacled lad and the dashing superhero that coexist inside both Cummins and Lehman rescue the form from the clutches of everyday life and transform it into something fantastic. In this ambitious work, even the table of contents is written in sestina form. Adding to the fun are 39 vivid illustrations by Archie Rand and cameo appearances by Marvin Bell, Anne Sexton, Walt Whitman, Ted Berrigan, Gary Snyder, Arthur Rimbaud, Grace Paley, and others.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This whimsical collection of 39 sestinas from Lehman, who edits the Best American Poetry series, and Cincinnati poet-critic Cummins (The Whole Truth) is an entertaining parlor game and a substantial book of poems. Sestinas consist of six stanzas of six lines each; each of the stanzas uses the same set of six words to end its lines; the end-words recur in different positions from stanza to stanza. (A seventh, three-line stanza uses all six words again.) Whether envisioning themselves as CIA agents, righting wrongs and exposing scandals in poetry, or opening their own "sestina bar," the two poets do it with flair and a sense of the absurd: horse racing, Henry James, sex, high school graduations, the board game Monopoly and a famous poet's "Big Hair" figure in; end words include "surrealism," "Sly Stallone," "Osama Bin Laden," "Secretariat," "Anne Sexton," "tango" and "sestina." Archie Rand's cartoonish illustrations (one per poem) add to the light mood.
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Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Soft Skull Press (December 8, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1933368047
• ISBN-13: 978-1933368047
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,220,514 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Great Title, Very Disappointing Poems, February 3, 2006

By 

J. Behrle "loser blogger & cartoonist & poeti... (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Jim and Dave Defeat the Masked Man (Paperback)

There are amazing illustrations in this little book. It's disappointing the poem sequence gets tired so quickly. This is an incredibly well-produced looking book whose poems would have been better-served in a chapbook. Lehman and Cummins' offerings are very forgettable and not much fun or funny--what a disappointment. Soft Skull press skimps on books by young poets like Danielle Pafunda and Jennifer L. Knox and does a first-class job producing a book of throw away poems here. What a waste.