Monster Fashion (Paperback)

by Jarret Keene (Author) "Dressed in decaying suits and ties, wrinkled zombies threaten the shiny-faced and hiply-attired..." (more)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Kicking off "After Watching a Local High School Stage Production of George Romero's `Night of the Living Dead,' " moving on "In Honor of the World's First Baby Abandonment Station" and through to "Graduate Student Gets Drunk After Reading Critical Terms for Literary Study," readers may wonder where Jarret Keene can go from his titles. The answer is deep into "Long luxuriant lambswool hides Hairy hides." Celebrating comic-horror culture and beyond in 50-odd page-length narratives and lyrics, Monster Fashion commemorates college dumpster diving, "Super-Adaptoids," "a wealth of pornography" and plenty of beer and bad movies. A former editor of Sundog: The Southeast Review, Keene teaches composition at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, and serves up "Spoofs that prove the criminality of Letterman's lack of originality."
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Description
Whether he is writing about Godzilla, Alfred E. Neuman, Ava Gardner, concealed weapons, or X-ray specs, Jarret Keene is always building a bigger world, tearing it down, and then putting it back together, each time creating a new place. As American a poet as Patti Smith or Walt Whitman, Keene is something else as well: legitimate pop-culture royalty whose award-winning poetry has been published in more than 50 literary journals and magazines. “Monster Fashion is apt to change your idea of beauty.” — William Trowbridge, author of Flickers

Product Details

• Paperback: 88 pages
• Publisher: Manic D Press, Inc. (April 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0916397777
• ISBN-13: 978-0916397777
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #956,986 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Poetry For the People, June 2, 2002

By	todd michael smith (henderson, nv United States) - See all my reviews

This collection of poetry reads like a Kevin Smith movie, Kevin Smith is the first thing that came to mind when I read this collection of poetry, Keene is fascinating with his ability to capture pop culture. The intellectual at any level will not be disappointed with this selection. Whether you agree with Keene or not, the man is brilliant. However, more importantly than the ability to choose themes common to a generation, Keene writes poems that come from the heart, if you haven't read "Gifted Students", then you have missed out on a spectacular display of emotion. This poet has a great sense of why poetry is in a lacluster state right now, and has a genuine love for the art of poetry. As cheesy as it sounds, this book has something for everybody, and Jarret Keene assures the reader that modern poetry does have something to offer the canon of poetry. Who knows, maybe we will see Jarret Keene in the Norton Anthology of poetry?

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gargantuan Appetities, March 30, 2002

By A Customer

I've been a big fan of Jarret Keene's poetry for many years now. He is possessed of a monster appetite for all things poetry. His poems entertain, awe, amaze, illuminate the human condition through high-energy, zinger-ized language. This is the kind of book you can read, and re-read, keep close to your heart. It is also the kind of book you can buy for your friends, or get on the phone and read individual poems to your friends. Bring it to a party, share the wit and humor. I highly recommend it.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You owe it to your brain to read this book, April 7, 2003

By	Mark W Barr (Austin, TX United States) - See all my reviews

Every damned poem in this book is a gift. Jarret Keene's funny, insightful, and is telling stories that resonate like they've been with me all along and I was simply too lost in the fog of daily toil to sit up and notice. His stuff is that good. It pierces the shroud of shock news and sitcom plaque that builds up on our psyches as we go about our lives. Keene's poems cleanse us, wipe our minds off so that they squeak with a kind of verbal freshness when his words hit our eyes.

Take, for a single instance, "Gifted Students," about a friend who has drowned. It sneaks in under your guard. Like a blindside tackle, you never see it coming. You draw breath to laugh and it comes out a sigh. THIS IS WHAT I WANT POETRY TO DO. These poems connect, and I'm here to tell you that it happens again and again as you work your way through this book.

And with a cover by comics god Jack Kirby, _Monster Fashion_ not only reads like jumper cables hooked up to your brain, it looks good doing it. Now, what more could you ask for?