The Return of the Blue Cat by F.D. Reeve, a review

Who is the Blue Cat? That is the question. At times he is a stray, at times F.D. Reeve himself. Certainly the best collection of poems I’ve read in a long while. F.D. Reeve is a little bit of Eliot and a smidgeon of Pound with a wink. At first I was skeptical. “Oh God, he’s breaking into French.” In my case it was the cd which turned me around and made the experience enlightening. The book is accompanied by a cd with readings by F.D. Reeve and music by Exit 59. This poetry is playful, almost like a cat playing with a ball of fluff. The music is good jazz which compliments a good reading by Reeve.
Let’s face it I’m a sucker for poetry with good music. My associates and I have been mixing the music with poetry for several years so I know the challenge in front of Exit 59. The reading by F.D. Reeve is really full of character and wit. The jazz by Exit 59 is superb. These guys did a wonderful job of adding music that makes me play the cd often. In fact it’s headed to my IPOD. The music is good folks. The poetry is excellent and together they break new ground for poetry. F.D. Reeves is a literary poet of the caliber of Pound and these poems combine humor and wit to make a statement of our times as well as the human condition. I highly recommend this book. You will love it. I also highly recommend the accompanying cd. Awesome!

The Return of the Blue Cat
F.D. Reeve
Other Press LLC
New York, NY

***

David Michael Jackson

WHAT I WAS TOLD BY A TRAVELER FROM THE EAST by John Horvath Jr

WHAT I WAS TOLD BY A TRAVELER FROM THE EAST

Never let it be said we grew ashamed

to weep over grand sorrows —

butterflies never seen beneath clouds

of coal soot on gray mornings when gray

women move through valleys between gray

stolid buildings sturdy as communism

itself, built to last forever. Whoring

too is a rebellion; it reeks of soured

law untouched like bad milk along back-

streets that even the starving reject.

It is never cold in my country where

sunrise greets each morning. Once

in the black coal I saw a diamond

winking from the midst of warm flames.

As you see, my hands are not burnt.

endpoem copyright John Horvath Jr

***

In This There is Autumn by Rebecca Jackson

_In This There Is Autumn_

She sheds her dress like an old skin
and draws on the lake’s flesh,
(darkness, chuckling softly,
quenches her
in his hand,)
her movement is the first
bare breath of storm
shivering against the water

she moves
opaque and unmade–
her body assimilating
the season;
becoming
the black of branches engraved,
the raw indigo of
circling water

she becomes the vivid scent of rain
clutching the roots
of summer grass,
her body
consumed by water
she becomes
the inauguration
of motion
the secret awareness
of autumn
she becomes
***

Poetry With Music

Poetry with music is our thing and has been for years.

From Nashville to Chicago to London, our poets voices and musicians work over the internet together to produce poetry and music together. A poet can write a poem every day. A musician can compose a piece of music every day. Together the poetry and the music on the net can be prolific.

Our poetry with music includes these free concerts:

Dreams of David Michael Jackson

Janet Kuypers and the DMJ Art Connection