The Spoken Word Revolution Redux

by Mark Eleveld

From its earliest days to today, poetry has always been a spoken art. On the page and out loud, poetry is the home for the brilliant, the rebellious, the artists and performers who are changing the world. Today's spoken word revolution is the literary equivalent to grabbing a culture by the collar and shaking it…hard. In the tradition of The Spoken Word Revolution, Redux brings more of the gripping, moving, innovative, often hilarious poetry in the oral tradition. This redefining collection gathers multiple forms of "spoken word" under the same motley tent―slam, hip-hop, musical interpretations, and youth movements among them. The resulting brew is both satisfying and world-expanding. One audio CD features some of the best poems and poets, immediately live in their own electrifying words and voices. The Spoken Word Revolution Redux

Genres: Poetry

256 pages, Hardcover

First published April 25, 2007

Reviews

[Rich Farrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

From its earliest days to today, poetry has always been a spoken art. On the page and out loud, poetry is the home for the brilliant, the rebellious, the artists and performers who are changing the world. Today's spoken word revolution is the literary equivalent to grabbing a culture by the collar and shaking it...hard.

[behsforensics]

Cutting is for Open Letter to Neil
Armstrong
By Mike McGee

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to read the original "Spoken Word Revolution" for a literature class in college and enjoyed it, so I grabbed this from the shelves when I saw it at my library. I was sort of disappointed, though. There are too many essays and not enough poetry, in my opinion. It seems like there are more pages devoted to discussion of what spoken word poetry is than actual poetry. Also, I would have liked to have more poems included on the CD (I'd say that audio is included for about a third of them) because most of these translate much better in sound than on paper. There were many poems that I didn't like much until I heard them on the CD. That said, there is plenty of good stuff in this book. As with any collection of poetry that I read, there were plenty of times that I had no idea what the poet was trying to say, but I usually liked how it sounded. There are several pieces that make you think and many are laugh-out-loud funny, especially in the satire section. "T.S. Eliot's Lost Hip-Hop Poem" and "Sylvia Plath's Gangsta Rap Legacy" are two of my favorites. This is great poetry for people who think traditional poems are dull.

[Bethany Ebert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the book that introduced me to Tom Waits. So that's cool. I like most of the poems, but some of them drag on. I liked the one poem where it was told like a story about the old woman who put a curse on a guy. And the poems that explored the issue of language and dialect, it was interesting for me to read that as a white person. The issue of feeling misunderstood and having to decide how much you are willing to compromise is something universal, I think, although I can't claim anyone else's experiences. I really liked the hip-hop parody of Sylvia Plath. It was so out-there but it worked. I also liked the wedding poem about the guy who says "pie glue" and spends a lot of time feeling awkward and ridiculous. It was a good portrayal of feeling overwhelmed by expectations. I guess I could go on for a while about the poems in this book. It's an eclectic collection. The book comes with a CD as well.

[Riah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Having drastically enjoyed Spoken Word Revolution (Vol. 1), I was sadly disappointed in this. I am GLAD that they finally recognized more of the other performance poetry styles (legacy, hip hop poetica, etc.), than they did in the original. I just wish that they had put it together in a different style with more history and explanation and less, "here it is --- hope you enjoy it". Perhaps my view has become skewed by the overwhelming amount of poetry I've been reading, watching, and listening to as of late.

[S10_tommccormack · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book (and CD) contains essays and poems by a variety of artists. The selections present a diversity of voices and perspectives. Many different poetic styles are also showcased. The book focuses more on spoken word poetry than hip-hop, but it does contain a hip-hop section. Jeremy Quickley’s essay “Hip Hop Poetry” would be an excellent stand-alone piece that students could read and discuss. There is some potentially offensive language, so this book would be better suited for older high school students.

[Meen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this anthology, but some spoken word does kinda lose something when it is textualized. Still, this book introduced me to a lot of new (and old) poets and several of them are going on my to-read list posthaste.

Even if every other piece in the book had been abysmal, reading the entire thing would have been worth it for Tara Betts' "For Those Who Need a True Story."

*weeps*

[Katie Nitka · Rating 5 out of 5]

I used this book heavily to teach a course on Spoken Word to my 11th graders. It has great articles in addition to an awesomely diverse collection of poems and a cd of performances. Wonderful resource!

[Miami University Libraries]

King Library (2nd floor) | PS617 .S67 2007

[angrykitty · Rating 4 out of 5]

i liked the first book more....but maybe it's just because i've used it more...but i look forward to using this volume as well.....

[Matthew Stolte]

meh.

[Thao Nguyen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Raw.

[Michael Ketigian]

http://www.amazon.com/Spoken-Revoluti...

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

I dug it.