[www.webdelsol.com]

I'm attending a poetry reading of her's this weekend. (It is during an awards ceremony and also for extra credit). Having only just now heard of her and looking at her stuff on the internet, I must say she's sort of "out there" and I'm not too impressed, but I would really like to know what some of you think and if you have heard of her before.

Well, I'm sure SHE likes what she writes.

As my mom would say, it's not my bag of tea.

I have not heard of her before.

Ithoughtshewas strange and different and
perhapsworth another look.

The runtogether words are pretty annoying- without that, there might be some okay poems in there.

I don't think I'll be buying her book any time soon.

pam

Every year my university has a visiting writer come and be the judge of our literary awards-poetry, fiction, non-fiction in first and second place. Well, she chose my fiction for second place, which upset me because I really wanted my poetry chosen. It makes me feel much much better to see that our styles just are no where similar. To each his own. I wouldn't have picked her's either.


And doesn't it make you wonder how some people become so sucessful with their poetry? I have professors who have shown me their stuff and I'm amazed that someone like Melendez has been so widely published.

If her words run together on the page, how do they read out loud? Does she get very breathless?

Breathless diarrhea

David Lee, who is one of my favorites, writes using a midwestern dialect- I understood it much better once I heard him read.

pam

King Kong or Zeus' dalliances among mortals, it's all pretty shocking, when mortals are victimized or elevated by their rape into divinity's cycles of brutality and creativity. It gets modernized even more with advice to the young girl that might just save her life which seems counter to her morality, "go limp." This is my take on her first poem "InBiruté's Camp." Not your drawing room mentality here, but strong mythopoetic talk, which I like.

Peter

I did wonder how she read her work orally, since the run on words don't add to the aesthetic of the written page. Also, it sounds like you have an axe somwhere in there to grind. Second place gets you a prize in my book. And I read lots of poetry I do not like or understand in order to widen my conception of the poem.

Peter

TheUnformed Heart is throughout a sensitive, even touching piece of emotion, restrained and indirect. I have no trouble with my liking of this and find it not in the least 'out there.'

Peter

I'll let you know.

Are you referring to David Dodd Lee?

You are right. I'm not sour about not getting first, just relieved that I'm not overly impressed with her poetry. That would be heartbreaking.

Ok, I have to say I am more impressed with her after the reading than from what I sampled of her online. she read a few poems from a new book that is pending publication and it was fantastic. Lots of imagery relating nature scenes to childbirth and motherhood. She also had this fantastic poem about "the Peterson case" (Lacy Peterson). I don't know the name of this book that will be coming out, but I think I might watch for it.

Glad to hear.....I was hesitant that they had to bribe you with promises of extra credit

Not just extra credit, but they had to give me an award, too to come.

Were you to understand there'd be punch and pie?

Of course.

No, there's also a David Lee- here's a little info about him. [www.coppercanyonpress.org]

pam

Wow, one year later, I'm not sure this will be read. It seems as if, when she reads, she has a diaphragm and a set of lungs given only to her. And she deserves it, if I must say so myself. The words being run together are for a sense of style. As a grammar queen, I must say I was a little annoyed at first, but then I realized her intentions and began to appreciate her genius.