Word of Mouth: An Anthology of Gay American Poetry [Paperback]

Timothy Liu (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2000

Poetry. Gay/Lesbian Studies. Edited by Timothy Liu, himself an accomplished poet (VOX ANGELICA, SAY GOODNIGHT), the formidable anthology WORD OF MOUTH covers a vast range of work by twentieth-century gay American poets. Arranged in order of the poets' birthdates, so that the book shades gradually from older luminaries of the poetry scene to bright newcomers, the work here forms a sparkling composite picture of gay poetic sensibility in the U.S. Including Ashbery, Auden, Brainard, Bronk, Duncan, Denby, Doty, Elmslie, Ginsberg, Gunn, Killian, Koestenbaum, Lansing, Mead, Merrill, O'Hara, Phillips, Schuyler, Shurin, Spicer, Wieners, and Williams.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The Hurricane Lamp by Jack Anderson
In The Next Room by Jack Anderson
A Lecture On Avant-garde Art by Jack Anderson
A Partial Index To Myself by Jack Anderson
A Reading Of This Poem by Jack Anderson
True Loves by Jack Anderson
A Way Of Happening by Jack Anderson
Forgotten Sex by John Ashbery
The Ice-cream Wars by John Ashbery
The Laughter Of Dead Men by John Ashbery
Sortes Vergilianae by John Ashbery
They Dream Only Of America by John Ashbery
Three Posthumous Poems: 1. Glad by Wystan Hugh Auden
Three Posthumous Poems: 2. Aubade by Wystan Hugh Auden
Three Posthumous Poems: 3. Minnelied by Wystan Hugh Auden
Boy Wearing A Dress by Dan Bellm
Open House by Dan Bellm
True Story by Dan Bellm
Knowing You Could Is Better Than Knowing You Will by Mark Bibbins
Shine by Mark Bibbins
Slutty by Mark Bibbins
Tingling In The Extremities by Mark Bibbins
By These Waters by Frank Bidart
For The Twentieth Century by Frank Bidart
In The Western Night: 1. The Irreparable by Frank Bidart
In The Western Night: 2. In My Desk by Frank Bidart
In The Western Night: 3. Two Men by Frank Bidart
Luggage by Frank Bidart
The Yoke by Frank Bidart
Even On Sunday by Robin Francis Blaser
In Remembrance by Robin Francis Blaser
Chaco Canyon by Edgar Bowers
I Remember, Sels. by Joe Brainard
17 March by William M. Bronk
Anyway by William M. Bronk
Bare by William M. Bronk
Colloquy On A Bed by William M. Bronk
Duplicity by William M. Bronk
For My Friend, Jerry, He Drunk by William M. Bronk
Friendly Greeting by William M. Bronk
In April by William M. Bronk
'in Our Image, After Our Likeness' by William M. Bronk
Lucifer by William M. Bronk
My Shoulder For Robert. Help Us Both by William M. Bronk
The Near Beyond by William M. Bronk
Questions For Eros by William M. Bronk
Scanning by William M. Bronk
The Wall by William M. Bronk
What You Can Do by William M. Bronk
Your Way Too by William M. Bronk
Afternoons In Ceylon by James Richard Broughton
Wondrous The Merge by James Richard Broughton
The Battle Hymn Of The Republic by Rafael Campo
A Poet's Education by Rafael Campo
Bending In by Tom Carey
Birthday by Tom Carey
Gay Pharmacy by Tom Carey
Amalgam by Cyrus Curtis Cassells
Fleur by Cyrus Curtis Cassells
Sung From A Hospice by Cyrus Curtis Cassells
Blues by Justin Chin
Communion, Said The Barfly by Justin Chin
On Aesthetics by Justin Chin
Bl by Dennis Cooper
Darkens by Dennis Cooper
Jfk Jr. To Play Father In Film by Dennis Cooper
My Past by Dennis Cooper
Some Whore by Dennis Cooper
Teen Idol by Dennis Cooper
Seeing All The Vermeers by Alfred Dewitt Corn
Against The See-through Plastic Curtain Of The West by Christopher Davis
The Knower Of The Field by Christopher Davis
Nod by Christopher Davis
Noli Me Tangere by Christopher Davis
The Pseudo-homosexual by Christopher Davis
Sangre De Cristo by Christopher Davis
Why Not Pleasure The Bigot's Body by Christopher Davis
At First Sight, Not Pollock, Kline Scared by Edwin Denby
Neighbor Sneaks Refuse To My Roof by Edwin Denby
The Subway by Edwin Denby
Summer by Edwin Denby
Venice by Edwin Denby
Villa D'este by Edwin Denby
Archaeopteryx by William Dickey
The Arrival Of The Titanic by William Dickey
The Death Of John Berryman by William Dickey
Plum by William Dickey
T.s. Eliot At One Hundred And Seven by William Dickey
D.o.a. by Tim Dlugos
Desire Under The Pines by Tim Dlugos
Here Comes The Bride by Tim Dlugos
Ordinary Time by Tim Dlugos
Pretty Convincing by Tim Dlugos
Summer, South Brooklyn by Tim Dlugos
Crepe De Chine by Mark Doty
Difference by Mark Doty
Where You Are: 1 by Mark Doty
Where You Are: 2. Everywhere by Mark Doty
Where You Are: 3. Van Gogh, Flowering Rosebushes: 1889 by Mark Doty
Circulations Of The Song by Robert Duncan
Bare Bones by Kenward Elmslie
Callas by Edward Field
Dietrich by Edward Field
Garbo by Edward Field
Getting To Know You by Edward Field
Holy Men, All by Edward Field
The Poetry File: Chicken Rampant, Bar Sinister by Edward Field
Post Masturbatum by Edward Field
Whatever Became Of Freud? by Edward Field
Only Envy by Daisy Fried
After The Party by Allen Ginsberg
C'mon Pigs Of Western Civilization Eat More Grease by Allen Ginsberg
Excrement by Allen Ginsberg
Multiple Identity Questionnaire by Allen Ginsberg
Sphincter by Allen Ginsberg
Things I'll Not Do: Nostalgias by Allen Ginsberg
'you Know What I'm Saying?' by Allen Ginsberg
Hi Risque by John Giorno
None Of Them Wanted To Go by John Giorno
Pornographic Poem by John Giorno
An Elizabethan Sonnet For D.w. by Brad Gooch
Nude by Brad Gooch
Rain by Brad Gooch
Words To Be Broadcast Over Eagle's Nest Sound System: 1 by Brad Gooch
Words To Be Broadcast Over Eagle's Nest Sound System: 2 by Brad Gooch
The Dump by Thomson William Gunn
Famous Friends by Thomson William Gunn
The Problem by Thomson William Gunn
A Wood Near Athens by Thomson William Gunn
Corpus: 1. The Lard Sculpture by Daniel Hall
Corpus: 2. Shrooms With Theo by Daniel Hall
Corpus: 3. Ornithology by Daniel Hall
Mangosteens by Daniel Hall
The New World by Daniel Hall
Pneuma: 1967 by Daniel Hall
Winged Torso Of Eros by Daniel Hall
A Boy Doesn't Know by Forrest Hamer
Crossroads by Forrest Hamer
Getting Happy by Forrest Hamer
Goldsboro Narrative: 24: Second Benediction by Forrest Hamer
Goldsboro Narrative: 28 by Forrest Hamer
Yellowknife Bay by Leland Hickman
My Last Hustler by Richard Howard
What Word Did The Greeks Have For It? by Richard Howard
August 321st - September 5th by Ronald Johnson
Beam 11: Finial by Ronald Johnson
Beam 16: The Voices by Ronald Johnson
Beam 17: The Book Of Orpheus by Ronald Johnson
Afta A Bob Creeley Poem by Stephen Jonas
Black Orpheus by Stephen Jonas
The Celibate by Stephen Jonas
No Saints In 3 Acts by Stephen Jonas
Orgasms/dominations: 12 by Stephen Jonas
Argento Series: Inferno by Kevin Killian
Argento Series: The Door Into Darkness by Kevin Killian
Argento Series: Zombie by Kevin Killian
Cemetery Without Crosses by Kevin Killian
Deep Red by Kevin Killian
Giallo by Kevin Killian
The Stendahl Syndrome by Kevin Killian
Suspiria by Kevin Killian
Trauma by Kevin Killian
Erotic Collectibles: 1978 by Wayne Koestenbaum
History Of Boys by Wayne Koestenbaum
Poem For George Platt Lynes by Wayne Koestenbaum
Star Vehicles: I'm Not In 'darling' by Wayne Koestenbaum
Star Vehicles: The Garbo Index by Wayne Koestenbaum
Blue Decrepit Town by Gerrit Lansing
The Curve by Gerrit Lansing
An Inlet Of Reality, Or Soul by Gerrit Lansing
Planting The Amplitudes by Gerrit Lansing
To The Boy Charioteer by Gerrit Lansing
1963 by Jaime Manrique
Leaving Ybor City by Jaime Manrique
When They Informed Him by Jaime Manrique
The Will To Live Manifests Itself by Jaime Manrique
After You Died by Richard Mccann
Night Of 1990 by Richard Mccann
Ouija by Joseph Donald Mcclatchy
On Amphetamine And In Europe by Taylor Mead
Two Poems For David Kalstone: 2. Farewell Performance by James Ingram Merrill
Love's Dial by Thomas Meyer
Cornkind by Frank O'hara
For The Chinese New Year & For Bill Berkson by Frank O'hara
Naphtha by Frank O'hara
Poem by Frank O'hara
Alba: Come by Carl Phillips
As From A Quiver Of Arrows by Carl Phillips
Elegy by Carl Phillips
King Of Hearts by Carl Phillips
Luna Moth by Carl Phillips
Meditation: Surrender by Carl Phillips
Toys by Carl Phillips
Tunnel by Carl Phillips
Cherry Elixir: The First Medication. So Mary Poppins by D. A. Powell
Gary Asleep In His Recliner, This Prison Work Clobbers. Today Let by D. A. Powell
How Would Ed Lower Himself To Sleep With Her. An Elaborate Rigging by D. A. Powell
Now The Mirrored Rooms Seem Comic. Shattered Light: I Once Entered by D. A. Powell
Only The Cruisy Toilets Will Suffer This Rascal. Mmm, Darlings by D. A. Powell
Sheet Wrapped As A Burnoose, About His Head by D. A. Powell
Tall And Thin And Young And Lovely The Michael With Kaposi's by D. A. Powell
Third-world Hunger Strikes You. Midtown Bus by D. A. Powell
This Is My Last Trick: If He Has Eyes They Are Escaping. The by D. A. Powell
You Don't Have Syphilis. The Doctor Says by D. A. Powell
You're Thin Again Handsome. In Our Last by D. A. Powell
Your Torso: Enticing To Insects. Like Me by D. A. Powell
Day Of '66-'73 by Boyer Rickel
A Head by James Schuyler
Letter To A Friend: Who Is Nancy Daum? by James Schuyler
Poem by James Schuyler
Tom by James Schuyler
A View by James Schuyler
The Beautiful by Reginald Shepherd
Les Semblables by Reginald Shepherd
Little Hands by Reginald Shepherd
Nights And Days Of Nineteen-something by Reginald Shepherd
A Plague For Kit Marlowe; In Memory Of Derek Jarman by Reginald Shepherd
Semantics At Four P.m. by Reginald Shepherd
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
City Of Men, Sels. by Aaron Shurin
Full Circle by Aaron Shurin
Involuntary Lyrics: 18 by Aaron Shurin
Involuntary Lyrics: 73 by Aaron Shurin
Live Of The Philosophers: Diogenes by Jack Spicer
Love Poems by Jack Spicer
Orpheus' Song To Apollo by Jack Spicer
A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Landscape by Jack Spicer
A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Landscape: 1. The Mind As Present by Jack Spicer
A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Landscape: 2. The Mind As Past by Jack Spicer
A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Landscape: 3. The Mind As by Jack Spicer
The Song Of The Bird In The Loins by Jack Spicer
When Your Body Brushed Against Me by Jack Spicer
Blood Test by Richard Tayson
In Sickness And In Health by Richard Tayson
Your Feet by Richard Tayson
Chatty Cathy Villanelle by David Trinidad
Eighteen To Twenty-one by David Trinidad
Hockney: Blue Pool by David Trinidad
Of Mere Plastic by David Trinidad
Red Parade by David Trinidad
The First Time by James L. White
Making Love To Myself by James L. White
Oshi by James L. White
The Salt Ecstasies by James L. White
Taken To A Room by James L. White
Act #2 by John Wieners
After The Orgasm by John Wieners
The Eagle Bar by John Wieners
The Garbos And Dietrichs by John Wieners
The Gay World Has Changed by John Wieners
Here For The Night by John Wieners
How To Cope With This? by John Wieners
A Poem For Cocksuckers by John Wieners
Two Years Later by John Wieners
Wednesday Or Something by John Wieners
Youth by John Wieners
The Anchorite by Jonathan Williams
Blue Ball Blues by Jonathan Williams
The Chameleon by Jonathan Williams
Dangerous Calamus Emotions by Jonathan Williams
The Distances To The Friend by Jonathan Williams
The Electronic Lyre, Strung With Poets' Sinews by Jonathan Williams
Finger Exercises by Jonathan Williams
The Honey Lamb by Jonathan Williams
The Look-out Tower At Mount Venus, Louisiana by Jonathan Williams
Syllables In The Form Of Leaves by Jonathan Williams
Difficult Body by Mark Wunderlich
No Place Like Home by Mark Wunderlich
Unmade Bed by Mark Wunderlich
-- Table of Poems from Poem Finder®

Product Details

• Paperback: 457 pages
• Publisher: Talisman House; 1st edition (July 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1584980060
• ISBN-13: 978-1584980063
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,481,892 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #74 in Books > Gay & Lesbian > Literature & Fiction > Poetry > Gay

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creme de la creme, November 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Word of Mouth: An Anthology of Gay American Poetry (Paperback)

Fresh as an oyster in December, these poems slide deliciously down the throat and leave one hungry for more. The big names are all here: Allen Ginsberg, Robert Duncan, Jack Spicer, John Ashbery...along with some tender young voices that seem to have stepped fully-formed and tremendously endowed from the ashes of the old: Mark Wunderlich, Mark Bibbins, Justin Chin and D. A. Powell. Who is D. A. Powell anyway? His poems make me want to swallow him whole. The collection is tonic and elegant, with only the occasional bit of fat (do we really need another anthology with Mary Doty in it?). Keep it next to your pillow, along with with a bottle of "wet."

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars D.A. Powell fan, March 27, 2001

By 

Tod (New Orleans, LA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Word of Mouth: An Anthology of Gay American Poetry (Paperback)

To answer the other New Orleanian's question: D.A. Powell is an incredible young poet, An Iowa graduate, who has published two books of which i know, Tea, and his new one, Lunch, which isn't as good over all but which contains probably my two favorite poems of his, "[My father and me in hollywood, fading and rising starlettes]" and another about his father which ends with a reference to Gone with the Wind. He's one of the highlights of the anthology and everyone should check him out!

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't judge this book by it's awful cover, January 23, 2001

By 

Rachel Tensions (Third Crack from the Corner, Avenue A and 13th, NYC BABY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Word of Mouth: An Anthology of Gay American Poetry (Paperback)

No self respecting gay poet would have signed off on being enclosed in a bland white! cover. The anthology itself is excellent, of course not all the up and coming legendary current poets are here. Seems it is true one only sees who one sees. And to answer the previous reviewers questions regarding the inclusion of Miss Doty in another anthology: he is needed in order to elevate the status of the current lesser knowns, a basic law of signature.

Kiss Kiss Rachel Tensions