My Cruel Invention: A Contemporary Poetry Anthology

by Bernadette Geyer (Editor), Alex Dreppec, Brett Foster

An outstanding collection of poetry about inventions and inventors, real and imagined, assembled by editor and poet, Bernadette Geyer, author of The Scabbard of Her Throat and a chapbook, What Remains.

"I was awed by the seemingly endless number of ways that poets approached the subject. Naturally, there are poems about real inventions--from clocks to pantyhose to chemotherapy drugs--as well as poems that conjure fantastical inventions--such as a contraption for kissing and a happy marriage machine.

While some of the poems in this anthology provide searing commentary on the dreadfulness of some of the creations birthed by inventors, other poems offer us a view into the stories behind inventions, as well as the lives of real and imagined inventors.

Whether invoking humor, irony, historic research, or imagination, the poems in this anthology converse not only with each other, but also with their readers and the world at large, in service to the continued human drive to create solutions--even to problems we didn't know we had."

-Bernadette Geyer

Poems by:
Alex Dreppec, Brett Foster, Clare Louise Harmon, Daniel Hales, David Mook, Donald Illich, Dorene O'Brien, F. J. Bergmann, FJP Langheim, Gwen Hart, H.M. Jones, Holly Karapetkova, J.G. McClure, Janet McNally, Jean Bonin, Jerry Bradley, Jesseca Cornelson, Jessica Goodfellow, Jo Angela Edwins, Joel Allegretti, Julie E. Bloemeke, Karen Bovenmyer, Karen Skolfield, Kathryn Rickel, Keith Stevenson, Kelly Cherry, Kim Roberts, Kirsten Imani Kasai, Kristine Ong Muslim, Laura Shovan, Magus Magnus, Malka Older, Marcela Sulak, Marjorie Maddox, Mia Leonin, Nolan Liebert, Norbert Gora, Rie Sheridan Rose, Rikki Santer, Robert Kenny, Sarah Key, Scott Beal, Shelley Puhak, Steven Wingate, Susan Bucci Mockler, Tanis MacDonald, Tanya Bryan, Tricia Asklar, W. Luther Jett, William Minor, and William Winfield Wright

Genres: Poetry, Anthologies

130 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2015

About the author

BERNADETTE GEYER is a writer, editor, and translator in Berlin, Germany.

Geyer is the editor of My Cruel Invention: A Contemporary Poetry Anthology (Meerkat Press). She is the author of The Scabbard of Her Throat (The Word Works) and What Remains (Argonne House Press). Her poetry has appeared in 2015 Poet's Market, Birmingham Poetry Review, North American Review, Oxford American, Poet Lore, and elsewhere.

Geyer's non-fiction has appeared in AFAR Magazine, Funds for Writers, GoNOMAD, Paste Magazine, Slow Travel Berlin, The Writer, and elsewhere.

Reviews

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I especially enjoyed the poems of Mia Leonin, Holly Karapetkova, and Joel Allegretti.

[Jeffrey Hatcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great and groundbreaking idea for an anthology! Poems range from biting, scary, just plain sick, and too prophetic to feel comfortable about. Some are very Edward Gory-esque (e.g. Phrenology, How Yard Games are Invented). Some tackle extinction (Invention of the Trees). Others are very current and sharp in applicability (Octet for My Unnameable Killer Apps). "3-D Printed Skin" and "Little Bone Robot Boy" beg the question of how much living tissue, naturally made, is required for the preservation of one person's humanity or society's humanity. These are only a sample of the diversity. Best read in a sunny, open place like a meadow where you won't scare too easily from the poignancy.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

You do not need to be a poetry fan or an expert on the different forms - this anthology contains a variety - to enjoy ((or be horrified by) this collection. From nature (A Fable (from the Journal of Chemical Ecology)) to nurture (Ball Color Changer) the historic -complete with the cruelty of experimentation on animals -(the heartwrenching Edison's Elephant), inventions of the past, present and yet to be developed, although some would do best to stay in the minds of the writers. A fantastic treat of a book that I won in a Goodreads Giveaway.

[T. Kent · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read an ARC copy of this book and have to say it is an amazing collection about cruel inventions. The poetry is stunning. Poems range from funny to frightening. This is a must read for anyone who enjoys poetry.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

All of these poems were full of emotion, and many of them consisted of some very dark material. Some made me cringe...not because they were bad but because the subject matter was difficult (especially the Thomas Edison one). Each poem was interesting and gave a new perspective on things that I might not have considered before.

[Sarah Tollok · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent collection of poetry that celebrates the symbiosis or art and invention. I was especially fond of the one about barometric pressure. The anthology did not shy away from cruel and dark aspects of inventions as well.
Trigger warning: cruelty to animals by Thomas Edison