Jim and Dave Defeat the Masked Man

by James Cummins, David Lehman, Archie Rand (Illustrations)

The sestina is a traditional poetic form that has enjoyed a recent surge in popularity, which promises to expand further with this witty illustrated cycle of poems. Casting themselves as poetic superheroes, authors Jim and Dave take on Osama Bin Laden and various other rogues and luminaries, defeating the “Masked Man” in the end to the cheering of appreciative crowds at the "sestina bar." As the two sestina-meisters take turns writing individual poems (and collaborating on one together), the mild-mannered bespectacled lad and the dashing superhero that coexist inside both Cummins and Lehman rescue the form from the clutches of everyday life and transform it into something fantastic. In this ambitious work, even the table of contents is written in sestina form. Adding to the fun are 39 vivid illustrations by Archie Rand and cameo appearances by Marvin Bell, Anne Sexton, Walt Whitman, Ted Berrigan, Gary Snyder, Arthur Rimbaud, Grace Paley, and others.

Genres: Poetry

80 pages, Paperback

First published December 8, 2005

Reviews

[Richard]

The sestina is a traditional poetic form that has enjoyed a recent surge in popularity, thanks in part to McSweeneys.net, which publishes poetry exclusively written in the sestina format. The repetitive linking particularly suits the form to narrative uses and opens comedic possibilities for the authors, who have gone so far as to create even the table of contents as a sestina and have written a sequence of 39--a number that echoes the number of lines in their chosen form.

Casting themselves as poetic superheros, Jim & Dave take on Osama Bin Laden and various other villains, defeating the Masked Man in the end to the cheering of appreciative crowds at the "sestina bar." Cameo appearances by Jorie (as in Graham), Kenneth (as in Koch), Marvin Bell, Anne Sexton, Walt Whitman, Ted Berrigan, Phillip Levine, Gary Snyder, Arthur Rimbaud, Denise Duhamel, Robert Hass, Grace Paley, Rainer Maria Rilke, and other prominent poets make cameos. As Denise Duhamel explains in her introduction, "Though one may wonder 'who is the masked man that James Cummins and David Lehman defeat?' a more interesting question is, 'Who are the masked men writing these poems? And what has drawn them to the sestina as the perfect form for their creative antics?' As the two sestina meisters take turns writing individual poems (and collaborating on one together), the mild-mannered bespectacled lad and the dashing superhero that coexist inside both Cummins and Lehman rescue the form from the clutches of everyday life and transform it into something fantastic."

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The sestina looks like a ton of fun to write, like playing cat's cradle with words and line breaks. But maybe not as thrilling for the watcher as for the doer. (Like folk dancing. Like chess. Like jokes between friends.) I enjoyed my taste of these, which had the added challenge of using contemporary poets as "jumping off" points, but a taste was all I needed.

[Lesley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. Simply.