Take Three: Agni New Poets Series: 1

by Thomas Sayers Ellis, Larissa Szporluk, Joe Osterhaus

Take Three Poets Take Thomas Sayers Ellis's fractured syntax, his spasmodic, staccato utterance suggest a defiant sensibility. Indeed, at the center of Ellis's work is the figure of an aggressive father, taunting his son into song. Thomas Sayers Ellis was a founding member of Boston's Dark Room Collective and coeditor of AGNI 's successful poetry anthology, On the Verge Take Larissa This poet stalks a landscape that is humid, stylized, Southern. The poet Gregory Orr says of her "Faced with such rending beauty, such ravished lucidity, all we can do is stand back and gaze with gratitude and awe." Larissa Szporluk studied at the Iows Writers' Workshop, has taught at Bowling Green State University, and now resides in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Take Joe Unabashedly intellectual and demanding, Osterhaus's verse displays a rare elegance. According to David St. John, "these precise meditations are dazzling for their ability to touch the seemingly ordinary moments of a life and find in them the materials of both miracle and change." Joe Osterhaus has published in such places as the Antioch Review , the Boston Review , and the Nebraska Review , and he currently lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Edited by Askold Melnyczuk and the poetry panel of AGNI magazine, Take Three is the first in an important annual series designed to launch the work of new poets.

Genres: Poetry

128 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1996

About the author

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Reviews

[C]

mini-review:

I bought the collection for Larissa Szporluk, but enjoyed Joe Osterhaus' collection the most.

An intriguing idea -- I like the showcase of different young voices together. I enjoyed the differences in the styles and rhythms.

Breakdown would have been: Thomas Sayers Ellis = 3 stars, Szporluk = 3 stars, Osterhaus = 4 stars.

A great read for the price and a great intro to three talented poets.

[Gary McDowell]

I love Szporluk's work.