Ground Zero: A Collection of Chicago Poems by Smith, Marc Kelly

Ground Zero: A Collection of Chicago Poems (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780810143081)

Vendor: Marc Kelly Smith
Product type: Books
Format: Paperback
$20.00
$20.00
$20.00
Subtotal: $20.00
Ground Zero: A Collection of Chicago Poems by Smith, Marc Kelly

Ground Zero: A Collection of Chicago Poems

$20.00
Ground Zero: A Collection of Chicago Poems by Smith, Marc Kelly

Ground Zero: A Collection of Chicago Poems

$20.00
Format: Paperback
Description
Description
x

Inception and implosion, Chicago's grit and grandiosity all come together in the finite poetic power of the original Slam igniter, renowned poet Marc Kelly Smith and his retrospect denotation, Ground Zero.

A cultural, community, and adversarial figure, Smith has challenged the status quo and raised new questions about an environment in a state of continuous calamity. Smith's power and influence have inspired celebrated figures who cut their teeth on both the stage and the page under his watchful eye--always speaking in the traditions of Carl Sandburg and Gwendolyn Brooks. Ground Zero challenges but pays homage to the thousand underbellies of Chicago with Smith's wicked, cigarette-in-the-beer language: "I ain't diggin' no concrete coffin, / No backyard mausoleum / To keep me a pickle sweet aplenty / Plied with sardines and pork sausage wieners / Livin' out the chance that some bubble-flesh victim / Will come puckered up and scabby lipped / To kiss me in the name of a new mankind."

Ground Zero leaves no doubt. The Slampapi / instigator / visionary / you-may-love-me-or-hate-me-but-my-history-will-always-be-chiseled-in-everything-the-poetry-world-does-next collects a survey of his land and his experience, no matter how beautiful or flawed. This book lets the landmines of imagery and Chicago's slow and uneasy drawl showcase one of our most original voices.

Author: Marc Kelly Smith
ISBN-10: 0810143089
ISBN-13: 9780810143081
Publisher: Triquarterly Books
Language: English
Published: 10/15/2020
Pages: 104
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.35lbs
Size: 8.90h x 6.10w x 0.40d

Review Citation(s):
Booklist 12/04/2020
By Marc Kelly Smith
By Marc Kelly Smith
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MARC KELLY SMITH is the creator and founder of the international slam poetry movement, for which he received the nickname Slampapi. Smith hosts the legendary Uptown Poetry Slam at Chicago's Green Mill Jazz Lounge and has performed all over the world. Among other achievements, Smith teamed with Mark Eleveld to create The Spoken Word Revolution: Slam, Hip-Hop, and the Poetry of a New Generation and The Spoken Word Revolution Redux, two best-selling book/CD anthologies of spoken-word artists and performance poets. He currently guides and directs One Poetic Voice, an innovative translation via performance poetry troupe.

MARK ELEVELD has been reviewing for Booklist since 2004. He is the editor of The Spoken Word Revolution and The Spoken Word Revolution Redux.

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