Poetry. Who's the queen of kundalini bloopers, Emily Dickinson's attitude problem (that bitch) and California dreams? It's Melissa Broder, who will...
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Jan 11, 2012
Victoria Lynne
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Melissa Broder's debut collection is as playful as it is biting. Turning the pages in this book - and you won't be able to stop turning - is like a kaleidoscope of poetry, each one more colorful, cutting, and mesmerizing than the last. The voice that carries each whirlwind of a poem is unapologetic and wonderfully gritty, leaving you raw by the end of the page. But whether the speaker is dealing with drugs ("You're nobody / 'til some sweet-faced junkie / with a Dixie cup of juice / and m
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Jan 05, 2010
Leanna
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This first collection is like a goody bag for poetry lovers. The poems are sweet and brightly colored but nevertheless pack the teeth-cracking crunch of hard candies--Broder’s sugar is more likely to burn the tongue than to dissolve on it. Her subject matter ranges from Jewish mothers to funny-pathetic New Yorkers to drugs and eating disorders. Especially sharp and affecting are her portraits of the teenage mind; pimpled wretches starve (“put dinner in a locket”), puke, pretend to do drugs, and
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Mar 12, 2010
Janine
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I've never been one much for poetry. I have no excuse, but I actually enjoyed Melissa Broder's writing and her unique view of the world. These poems are visual and, at times, quite gritty. But the snarkiness of her prose had me laughing out loud at times, and I found it refreshing.
I originally requested this book of poems simply because the title piqued my interest. But my favorite poem is not the one that shared the title of the book. My favorite is "Falling Off the Richter Sca More...
I originally requested this book of poems simply because the title piqued my interest. But my favorite poem is not the one that shared the title of the book. My favorite is "Falling Off the Richter Sca More...
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Feb 26, 2011
Aaron
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Melissa Broder's logic leaps unpredictably and yet seems perfectly intuitive. Same might be said of her bizarre syntax, which somehow sounds right. I love the way she forces pop references to submit to her poetics, dominatrix-like. Seriously, this is one of those books I can't find anything wrong with. I'm glad to have it on my shelf. And just when I was starting to lose faith in my generation's vision for poetry. If anyone knows of other poets doing this kind of work, especially female poets, p
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Oct 01, 2010
Sharon
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I bought this book of poetry spontaneously at the booksmith after four key moments standing in the poetry aisle:
- Laughed at the title
- Saw author's last name
- Saw that the first poem was called "Jewish Voodoo"
- Saw that the fourth poem was called "We Will Find Ourselves Hating a Blonde Stranger."
- Thought the author, who I could probably contact, might be friends with Jonathan Safran Foer.
I really wanted to love these poems, bu More...
- Laughed at the title
- Saw author's last name
- Saw that the first poem was called "Jewish Voodoo"
- Saw that the fourth poem was called "We Will Find Ourselves Hating a Blonde Stranger."
- Thought the author, who I could probably contact, might be friends with Jonathan Safran Foer.
I really wanted to love these poems, bu More...
Jan 11, 2010
Rivka
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"If I don't stop using/ the word fingerbang/ I'll never get to be poet laureate."
This is not your mother's poetry (and probably not Oprah's either). Thank God for that. These poems are sweet&sweaty with a sharp sense of the reality- full of drinking, drugs, Jews, Duane Reade, and that effing Billy Collins.
This is not your mother's poetry (and probably not Oprah's either). Thank God for that. These poems are sweet&sweaty with a sharp sense of the reality- full of drinking, drugs, Jews, Duane Reade, and that effing Billy Collins.
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Nov 07, 2010
Joseph
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With subjects like these you might expect a looser poem, but these are paced and ordered and a little frightening in the exactitude they take on their people. Whether they love their people isn't entirely sure, but I suspect they do.
Jul 22, 2011
I am so excited about this book. It's on my bed side which means theoretically it is on my "currently reading" list but I may not actually begin really reading it for a few days... The author has signed it (it says my name even!) and it got to me awfully fast after winning it. Very exciting.
Normally I don't read poetry. That's because I write it and, well, I used to write it, and reading it tends to, well depress me about my own writing piled away in shoe boxes and gift wine More...
Normally I don't read poetry. That's because I write it and, well, I used to write it, and reading it tends to, well depress me about my own writing piled away in shoe boxes and gift wine More...
Sep 02, 2010
Cheryl
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screams 'rhyming dictionary'
too much rhyme
maybe that is too harsh, maybe just my mood
too much rhyme
maybe that is too harsh, maybe just my mood
Jun 09, 2011
Emily
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Good god, girl. Save a skull or two for senility.
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Jul 23, 2010
Lauren-Beth
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I haven't been into poetry much either (aside from what was assigned in school) but Melissa Broder has redefined what "poetry" is to me and I can't wait for more!
Dec 10, 2010
Matthew
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Very funny. Very smart. It's impossible not to enjoy reading Broder's poetry.
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