Troubled Lovers in History: A Sequence of Poems

by Albert Goldbarth

Troubled Lovers in History  demonstrates an exhilarating from the briefest of lyrics to rich and multipartite narrative adventures in exotic realms; from a comic monologue spoken in immigrant “Yinglish” to a soulful elegy set in San Antonio’s Pearl Beer brewery plant; from Martian invaders, through polar explorers, to all of us busy inflicting “words with edges” on those we love. Goldbarth sets his unflinching study of individual hope and grief against the backdrop of the travels of Marco Polo; Bertha and Wilhelm Rontgen’s discovery of X-rays; an 1800 battle “twixt Dragon Sam, the great Exhaler of Gouts of Amazing Flame . . . and Liquid Dan, the Living Geyser.” From the night stars to the little starring parts we all play every day,  Troubled Lovers in History  takes us into the text of our dreams and despairs, as witnessed by the writer whom Joyce Carol Oates called “a poet of remarkable gifts—a dazzling virtuoso who can break your heart.”

Genres: Poetry

136 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Albert Goldbarth is an American poet born January 31, 1948 in Chicago. He is known for his prolific production, his gregarious tone, his eclectic interests and his distinctive 'talky' style. He has been a Guggenheim fellow and won the National Book Critics Circle award in 1991 and 2001, the only poet to receive the honor two times. He also won the Mark Twain Award for Humorous Poetry, awarded by the Poetry Foundation, in 2008.

Goldbarth received his BA from the University of Illinois in 1969 and his MFA from the University of Iowa in 1971. He is currently distinguished professor of Humanities at Wichita State University, and he teaches in the Low-Residency MFA program in Creative Writing at Converse College.

Reviews

[Amalia Wompa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've never really read short-form poetry books before, and I was initially hesitant just because I wasn't sure if it would interest me enough considering it goes against what a story usually is for me. But, against my bitterness this one singlehandedly changed my perspective on the entire genre. I've highlighted and annotated just about every page of this book, and I can confidently say I've learned more about myself and the world through Goldbarth's mind than most 500 page novels I've read that claim to do the same thing. Every poem in this book is its' own if that makes sense. Below are some of my favorite lines:

"How far could you fall if you fell like energy into a microchip?"

"and by the stabs of love, and the love of stabbing, you can tell that as the supersonic cruiser slips across the sky, it passes for a heartbeat blur above the year 1000."

"I can read the text in the text of the wedding. Two of us, saying eager yes, and yes, in front of the witnesses. And already, a head in each of our heads, a mind in each of our minds, beginning to slowly shake itself against the thick of the current- no, and no."

"I explained my idea of life, and I could see it wasn't material at all. It was a phantom life, and she could put her hand right through me: I was supernatural"