Let Me Be Your Absent Friend: A SEDUCTION OF INNOCENT MINDS [Paperback]

Abbey Laurel-Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 23, 2004

The general picture of the book is summed up by the subtitle "a seduction of innocent mind" as taken from one of the classical pages. Its most amiable example in the book was a poem about a man, who on realizing his humanity, "a duty of care" (Lord Atkin 1934) for all that is in nature. Thinking it is the only way to rise above the type of nature he has always known. But on realizing that he could not augment the links beyond those that made him human (his emotions and his passions) he decided to probe his own illustrated image, by taking himself to court, for passing wind in front of the President.. Eventually, he discovers that there is more to the makeup of nature in nature - the wind he passed, was a blustery act for the senses only and the President, he noticed, had served his time and left, but his office remains for others to occupy. Hence his duty continues, as an observer caught within the currents of Kantian Blues - as the substance for his gists, remain forever dependent on the world around him. And so it was that he developed a sharper view of conscience and self-correction. He moved from the temporal notions of being a romantic to the ethically driven in volume as his gaze shows in Pain when hooked, The Cat fighting its Claw and other verses in the book. "A constant ability to coherently shift from feelings to facts, from poetry to painting without a sense of disruption." -William Zimmer, contributing critic to the New York Times

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

ABBEY LAUREL-SMITH (ABIODUNOLADEWA)Unedited Verses¿ Abbey Laurel-Smith (AbiodunOladewa) was on December 27, 1965, at Igboora, about a hundred kilometers awayfrom Ibadan, in the Western part of Nigeria, West Africa.¿ He studied Fine Art at The Polytechnic of Ibadan, Nigeria and started practicing as a full-timeartist in 1988.¿ He was made an officialof the Society of Nigerian Artists in 1989 before leaving for England,the United Kingdomin 1990.¿ Whilst in England,he authored numerous exhibitions of his paintings and drawings and was luckyenough to share an exhibition platform with His Royal Highness, The Prince ofWales at Roy Miles Gallery, in Mayfair,London, in the summer of 1993.¿ He also studied History of Art and HeritageManagement in Englandand Venice, courtesy of TheUniversity of Buckingham, its prestigious WaddesdonManor and Oxford Brookes University, all in neighborlyBuckinghamshire and Oxfordshire.¿ In 2001, he received a Dorothy Buley Fellowship for a Pastel Artist at the Vermont Studio Center,Johnson, Vermont.¿ He was The Artist in Residence at The ArtCenter of South Florida, where he authored the famous "take away art"exhibition, in the first half of the year 2002 and was also the South Florida's Artist of the month in November of the same year.¿ Now a Maineresident, he has lived in the states of New Jersey(Matawan) Florida (Miami Beach) since the year 2000 and has just been given awriters' award in Poetry, by the Vermont Studio Center,Johnson, Vermont.¿¿

Product Details

• Paperback: 228 pages
• Publisher: AuthorHouse (June 23, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1418444839
• ISBN-13: 978-1418444839
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,558,453 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars I laughed, I cried, July 16, 2004

By 

Mark Heston (NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Let Me Be Your Absent Friend: A SEDUCTION OF INNOCENT MINDS (Paperback)

This poetry warms your soul. With its references to childhood and mother, beasts and relationships, serious and silly, it offers a rare perspective on life as it flows effortlessly from its pages. I have been compelled to phone some of my friends and read some passages to them. The drawings are an additional bonus.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An absent friend indeed, July 14, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Let Me Be Your Absent Friend: A SEDUCTION OF INNOCENT MINDS (Paperback)

After reading this collection of poems, one could only wonder about what could have made the man/the poet/the artist "who on realizing his humanity discovers himself in nature" at first, before proceeding to "probe his own illustrated image" - simply "by taking himself to court for passing wind in front of the President". But then the writer provided the answer in the most unexpected place - the back cover, claiming the man/the poet/the artist, "developed a sharper view of conscience and self-correction, therefore "he moved from the temporal notions of being a romantic to the ethically driven in volume"...ah!

...fascinating and easy to read, but hard to put down as one of those books.