Poems Of A Dystopian Lockdown : 121 Roaches And A Shotgun

by Melanie Grenier

This short and unusual narrative poetry by Melanie Grenier, award-winning Canadian writer, depicts the anguish-ridden world inside "the building". In this despotic world of dwarves and one-legged men, protagonists try to survive daily life while under constant threat from the mysterious "They", their roommates, and themselves; A man on the fifth floor saw a spot between his toes. In less than a week, it was apparent on his calves, thighs, genitals and torso. Fungus in these kinds of places has nothing of inoffensive moss about it.

This tragicomic assemblage of short stories points to our own madness; On the outside, things aren't getting any better. Bulldozers dump masses of vagabonds in front of the building. They get to their knees painfully in order to maneuver into vertical positions, then support each other in a brief burst of solidarity.

62 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 18, 2015