the book of smaller

by Rob Mclennan

Written while at home full-time with two small children under five, the book of smaller is a collection of short, sharp, incredibly dense prose poems. Created in moments snatched from chaos, these poems challenge the possibilities of language in very small spaces. Each poem is a still moment, a memory, a burst of observation, suspended outside time and held up to the light as the world whirls around it. Some are intimate, some are public, all are grounded personal, domestic space. With trademark intelligence and daring, rob mclennan uses radical structures to express the concision and disorientation, jumps in sense and mood, the collapse of time and duration, the shattering joy and powerful fears, of full-person, full-time parenthood. With an unparalleled knowledge of modern poetry and poetic evolution, mclennan breaks the sentence into its most vital pieces, then breaks it further, smashes punctuation out of the expected into spaces of risk and uncertainty, pushing conventions to the edge and then beyond to challenge what writing is, and what a reader can be.

Genres: Poetry

126 pages, Paperback

Published May 15, 2022

About the author

Born in Ottawa, Canada’s glorious capital city, rob mclennan currently lives in Ottawa. The author of nearly thirty trade books of poetry, fiction and non-fiction, he won the John Newlove Poetry Award in 2010, the Council for the Arts in Ottawa Mid-Career Award in 2014, and was longlisted for the CBC Poetry Prize in 2012.

In Canadian Literature, Gordon Bölling praised his novel Missing Persons as “a welcome addition to the body of Canadian prairie fiction.” His collection of short fiction, The Uncertainty Principle has been described as: “Little flash fictions, some quirky, some funny, some touching. A fun read.” (Pearl Pirie). In a review on the ottawa poetry newsletter, Ryan Pratt wrote that “Thanks to mclennan’s discipline, our experience reading The Uncertainty Principle requires none. Organized to accommodate brief interactions (which, like the psychology behind bite-sized chocolate bars, results here in complete overindulgence), the book proves incessantly fresh, taken as a whole or in cursory, page-flipping handfuls.”

An editor and publisher, he runs above/ground press, Chaudiere Books, The Garneau Review (ottawater.com/garneaureview), seventeen seconds: a journal of poetry and poetics (ottawater.com/seventeenseconds), Touch the Donkey (touchthedonkey.blogspot.com) and the Ottawa poetry pdf annual ottawater (ottawater.com), as well as organizes the semi-annual ottawa small press book fair, which he co-founded in 1994. He spent the 2007-8 academic year in Edmonton as writer-in-residence at the University of Alberta, and regularly posts reviews, essays, interviews and other notices at robmclennan.blogspot.com

Reviews

[Tina]

This past weekend I read the book of smaller by rob mclennan and I really enjoyed this CanLit poetry book! At first I thought this short paragraph form of poetry wasn’t for me but the more I read the more I appreciated the interesting use of punctuation, sentence structure and word choice. These poems explore parenthood, birthdays, writing and the seasons. My fave poems are Reading Ed Dorn in Vancouver and Sentences my mother used. It was fun how each poem was a snapshot of everyday moments. I’d definitely be interested to read more of mclennan’s writing. He’s the author of more than 30 books so I have a lot to choose from! I’m so glad to have this poetry book in my collection now. I’m really loving CanLit poetry this year!

Thank you to ZG Stories and University of Calgary Press for my gifted review copy!

[Amanda]

Condensed narrative that is finely honed.

[Sam Hughes]

I was pleasantly surprised to find a copy of Rob Mclennan's The Book of Smaller in my mailbox earlier today. I so dearly enjoy shorter form prose, to cleanse my palette in between books. Another 5-star selection for me I would say.

The key theme to pull away here is "Perennial." Deriving from it's meaning of everlasting or continuing onward; Mclennan pens his experiences throughout his daily flow, raising two small children alongside his partner, watching the world turn around him, constructing several elegies to idols and mentors within his reach, and taking the turns that life hands him.

This rainy day read has me read to digest more of his prose works and send praise for the release date to come on May 12, 2022.

5/5 Stars

[Lindsay]

(the book of smaller) deserves a place on your coffee table.

How did the book make me feel/think?

First Word: Civilization.

(the book of smaller) deserves a place on your coffee table.
​
This might be the best book cover of the year. You pick the year!

WRITTEN: 16 March 2022

[Patrick Conner]

the book of smaller is a sharp and inventive collection of prose poems that finds remarkable depth within very small spaces.

Written amid the demands of full time parenthood, the poems capture intimate moments, memories, observations, fears, and bursts of joy from everyday domestic life.

The collection stands out through its radical use of language and structure. Sentences, punctuation, time, and meaning are continually disrupted, creating a reading experience that feels fragmented yet purposeful.

There is an impressive tension between the small scale of each poem and the larger emotions behind them. Parenthood becomes a space where time collapses, ordinary moments become significant, and language is pushed beyond familiar boundaries.

Overall, the book of smaller is a daring work for readers interested in contemporary poetry, experimental writing, parenthood, language, and the possibilities of poetic form.

[Julian Day]

A collection of prose poems circumscribing the domestic, The Book of Smaller is a form of tightly compacted documentation. Written in scraps of time gathered throughout the day, the poems of Smaller present to us the details of mclennan's daily life — morning coffee, trips to Sainte-Adèle, the slow-cooker, a child's rain slick — as well as small moments of beauty, as when one daughter demonstrates to the younger the best way to kick a ball. mclennan's own childhood juxtaposed, a memory of where he was born, details of the childhood farm, running down the things his mother used to say to him, that role once again his. Also present: minimalistic poems reminiscent of (and at least one directly inspired by) Nelson Ball, as well a few after Carson's short lectures. This is a collection of archival and record-making, and one of mclennan's finest.

[Benjamin Niespodziany]

rob mclennan is poetry’s most prolific cheerleader. If he’s not celebrating the work of a poet or providing a generous review, he’s releasing chapbooks from talented writers through above/ground press. On top of this passionate undertaking, he’s also a hell of a poet. With his newest collection of prose poems, The Book of Smaller feels like a pandemic book or a lockdown book, despite it being written pre-COVID. Meditative, ambient, domestic, and insightful, it’s made up of the sparse moments of free time while caring for young children. Put this book by your bed. Read one a day for an entire season and see how you feel.

[Nate]

My review in DIAGRAM 23.1: http://thediagram.com/23_1/rev_mclenn...