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casparb's review
Tate's last !! he persists!! in Tateism !! Gosh what a chap I have a lot of respect for this inimitable imagination & whilst it doesn't stray from that exactly I wouldn't suggest this as an intro to the big man
bhaines's review against another edition
Easier going than selected poems. Some pretty funny / touching / both. Some kind of theory about hot dogs and beans.
ohainesva's review against another edition
5.0
I'm not sure if I know what poetry is but this was pretty dope
lerm's review against another edition
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
jessferg's review against another edition
5.0
I have to disclaimer here because although I get that "prose poetry" is a thing and that the author most likely preferred to call these works "poems," but I think Tate's work would benefit from a re-branding as "flash fiction." It frustrates me that this book (and probably others of Tate's) are overlooked simply because of the general world's fear of poetry.
That's not to say there aren't poetic elements and complexities to these pieces. This isn't a book to pick up and zip through (although in all honesty, I did but mostly because I know I'll reread a lot of these) so it doesn't follow the "rules" we associate with most books. Each work is dense with language, emotion, and images - it's best to read one or two and let them percolate. Four pages - and your head will be full.
Some pieces read like set-ups for jokes and you're ready for the punch line except that the punch line ends up being from some other joke. Most feel like dreams; things start and stop quickly, panic sets in even though you know "this isn't real," unbelievable things are readily accepted as fact. It's really effing fun.
I'm sad that this, Tate's posthumous book, is the first I've read, but I can say with some certainty that I will be seeking out his previous works.
That's not to say there aren't poetic elements and complexities to these pieces. This isn't a book to pick up and zip through (although in all honesty, I did but mostly because I know I'll reread a lot of these) so it doesn't follow the "rules" we associate with most books. Each work is dense with language, emotion, and images - it's best to read one or two and let them percolate. Four pages - and your head will be full.
Some pieces read like set-ups for jokes and you're ready for the punch line except that the punch line ends up being from some other joke. Most feel like dreams; things start and stop quickly, panic sets in even though you know "this isn't real," unbelievable things are readily accepted as fact. It's really effing fun.
I'm sad that this, Tate's posthumous book, is the first I've read, but I can say with some certainty that I will be seeking out his previous works.
greenspe's review against another edition
4.0
If I read too many of these in a row, or too frequently, I'd get a little tired of them, but if I picked it up after putting it down for a while I really loved them. 4.5 stars and I will definitely be looking for more of Tate's collections.
aspeed's review
5.0
These are more like surreal flash fic than standard poems, but I don't care, as I loved every one of them.
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