Brief Candles: 101 Clerihews

by Henry S. Taylor

Not since W. H. Auden's Academic Graffiti has a poet of serious substance indulged so thoroughly in clerihews, those miniature (and often outrageously fictional) biographies invented just over 100 years ago by E. C. Bentley (1875--1956). In Brief Candles, Pulitzer Prize winner Henry Taylor takes on with hilarious irreverence people usually taken most seriously -- members of the Supreme Court, poets laureate, literary theorists, Whitewater celebrities, and New Testament figures -- demonstrating through 101 clerihews that one of the primary purposes of poetry is to have fun, even while craftsmanship remains paramount. Taylor's shimmering wit and resourceful use of rhyme combine with whimsical illustrations by Heather Alexander to make these tiny playful pieces a rare treat for all readers. In times of tribulation, we can read the Book of Lamentations, or the Psalms, or just as likely, Henry Taylor's clerihews. They are, as he calls them, Brief Candles, but they do give a satisfying light.

Genres: Poetry

51 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2000

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database named Henry Taylor.

Henry S. Taylor is an American Poet and winner of the 1986 Pulitzer Prize for his book The Flying Change .

Taylor was raised as a Quaker in rural Virginia, and graduated from the University of Virginia in 1965. He received his MFA from Hollins University (formerly Hollins College) in 1966, after which he taught literature and co-directed the MFA program in creative writing at American University from 1971-2003.

Reviews

[David Anthony Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mildly humorous and occasionally witty.