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A Good Time Had by All
Brimming with quirky characters and uncommon insights, this collection of poems introduces a Karaoke King who almost blows his one shot at true love; a misanthrope who loses his only friend; and a young girl who recites an ode to “Dirty Donnie,” the name she has given her constant a cigarette. Accessible and open, jaunty and energetic, these poems pay homage to everyday experiences and poetic tradition—with monologues that rub shoulders with aubades and odes and incantatory rhyme throughout.
96 pages, Paperback
First published March 30, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
July 7, 2023
This is exactly what I want from a poetry collection. I find Strimas to be exceptional with her words, pacing, and storytelling. Her writing feels very natural, and her poetic voice is consistent across the entire book.
One thing I love about Strimas’ poetry is that she’s not using it to present herself as a certain type of person like a lot of modern(ish) poets seem to do. Instead, she’s giving us little slices of life where she’s sometimes an active character and sometimes not. She has poems where she’s the victim, but other times where she is the abuser; she has poems where she’s the teacher and other times where she is the learner. There are poems where she’s ditching horny men in diner washrooms and other poems where men are rejecting her for being too chubby. Essentially, you’re seeing multiple sides of the same story or issue. I find this to be a much more accurate reflection of the modern existence; most people throughout life will eventually experience both sides of things…sometimes we’re on top and sometimes we’re on the bottom. Rare is the person who is always a victim or who is so beautiful that they’ve never faced rejection. I think Strimas’ poetry does a really good job showing this fact of life.
Her poems are funny and filthy; she is not shy about using a dirty word to try to make a point. She also isn’t afraid of admitting to the faults that she has and occasionally making herself look like a bad person. This might sound weird, but she seems to be serving poetry first and herself second; her art comes before any self-aggrandizing.
I only have one more of her books to read before I’m stuck waiting for her to write another book, so if anyone has any suggestions of similar poets, I would be open to that. If the poet is a Torontonian like myself and Strimas, then that would be a bonus :p
PS - the gnome poems were good, but weird. They were reminiscent of Atwood’s early snake poems/section
One thing I love about Strimas’ poetry is that she’s not using it to present herself as a certain type of person like a lot of modern(ish) poets seem to do. Instead, she’s giving us little slices of life where she’s sometimes an active character and sometimes not. She has poems where she’s the victim, but other times where she is the abuser; she has poems where she’s the teacher and other times where she is the learner. There are poems where she’s ditching horny men in diner washrooms and other poems where men are rejecting her for being too chubby. Essentially, you’re seeing multiple sides of the same story or issue. I find this to be a much more accurate reflection of the modern existence; most people throughout life will eventually experience both sides of things…sometimes we’re on top and sometimes we’re on the bottom. Rare is the person who is always a victim or who is so beautiful that they’ve never faced rejection. I think Strimas’ poetry does a really good job showing this fact of life.
Her poems are funny and filthy; she is not shy about using a dirty word to try to make a point. She also isn’t afraid of admitting to the faults that she has and occasionally making herself look like a bad person. This might sound weird, but she seems to be serving poetry first and herself second; her art comes before any self-aggrandizing.
I only have one more of her books to read before I’m stuck waiting for her to write another book, so if anyone has any suggestions of similar poets, I would be open to that. If the poet is a Torontonian like myself and Strimas, then that would be a bonus :p
PS - the gnome poems were good, but weird. They were reminiscent of Atwood’s early snake poems/section
January 18, 2011
Well...one of her poems inspired me to write one of my own. She's got a gritty, dirty writing style. I was shocked to see her use 'turd' in a poem. Not sure it was a good shock either. Some of her poems are beautiful and really hit in my stomach, but I found a lot of them fell flat. I felt some of the pieces were a little awkward in the line breaks.
The poems that I did like I really really liked, though. Funny how that works.
The poems that I did like I really really liked, though. Funny how that works.
February 13, 2011
Check out my Toronto Poets - 5 Questions Series interview with Meaghan Strimas on the TTQ blog!
http://thetorontoquarterly.blogspot.c...
http://thetorontoquarterly.blogspot.c...
December 19, 2013
Visceral poetry that feels like the aftermath of a long intoxicated relationship. The voice is real,hurt and healing.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews