Customer Reviews

Strike Anywhere: Poems

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One of his earliest works holds up beautifully over the years! Let your mind loose and see what it comes back with.

How does the nursery rhyme go? "When he was good, he was very, very good, but when he was bad he was awful." I think that's it. Young can be surprisingly philosophical and poignant, which is why I've re-read this book. But this book is in desperate need of an editor, as some of the poems are debatably nonsensical, even for those familiar with surrealist poetry. Poems such as "Ready-Made Bouquet," "Immortality," and "One Story" are touching, humorous, philosophical and interesting, and make this book a worthwhile investment. Other poems, however, make very little sense at all, and Young's recurring fascination with student sex, regret, and juice make many poems frustratingly awkward. He has the tendency to discuss painting, and if the reader is not familiar with the painting or painters he is discussing, such as Ernst or Magritte, the poem will make little sense. For this reason, Young's writing is certainly esoteric. As a surrealist, he does well to use shifting imagery and abstraction, and he effectively employs traditional formal techniques in a backward way. He appears to have the humor of James Tate or Kenneth Koch, but can be as impenetrable as Pinsky. I would recommend this book only to those who enjoy the New York poets, Joel Sloman, or James Tate, but it certainly is not as memorable as their efforts.

Heat it up to 98 degrees, dont get in the breeze, If your getting really hot, well dont panic cause your not!

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