Jillian Weise was already the author of two collections of poetry when she began writing The Colony, a novel that is by turns disturbing, beautiful and hilarious.

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Birds, LLC is unique in the landscape of small poetry presses. Run by a group of friends who reside in multiple cities, the underlying aim of the press seems to be to publish within a small circumference of poets with close ties to its editors. Ben Mirov puts this small press under the spotlight.

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Justin Taylor’s collection Everything Here is the Best Thing Ever is jagged-edged, darkly wrought debut made of broken beer bottles and sidereal light. Stories in the collection range from densely packed flash narratives to longer pieces that draw out their impact in a lengthier, but no less potent, manner. Perhaps the most articulate aspect of the collection is its unforgiving portrayal of its characters. The young men and women in Taylor’s stories gain their vividness and our sympathy via the same qualities that make them distasteful outsiders.

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Although The Dance of No Hard Feelings is Mark Bibbins’ second book of poetry, nothing about this recently released collection feels sophomoric. Its bulk (just under 100 pages), its effortless political and didactic flourishes, its lapidary formal qualities and charismatic cadences give an impression of rare expertise.

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Small Press Spotlight is a new monthly column at BOMBlog that explores the incredibly varied world of small literary presses, one at a time. First up: poetry powder keg FENCE Books. Check out our rundown of their recent releases.

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“I begin to see burned in every verse / an alcove, a rest, a bloody lumbering foot / I have cracked the words filled with wine.” Ben Mirov reviews Cedar Sigo’s Stranger in Town, an accumulation of poems many of which seem held together by magic.

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John Reed’s Tales of Woe offers a parade of captivating, affronting stories that challenge and delight—er, disturb—the reader. BOMBlog’s Ben Mirov wades through the tears.

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My shadow will kill your shadow, reader. Jason Bredle’s new book of poetry, Smiles of the Unstoppable, is out now from Magic Helicopter Press. In this Q&A Jason and Ben Mirov discuss cliché, finger bones, and how art should affect the heart.

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Somewhere between art book and poetry opus, Brandon Downing’s Lake Antiquity fills a void that may well represent the future-space of new writing. BOMBlog’s Ben Mirov picks his brain.

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Word Choice features original works of fiction and poetry. Read a poem by Ben Mirov with art by Bruce Mackay, selected by Daniel Moysaenko.

 

The View from My Cube Looks Out on Endless Static

                                         *

They have begun collecting the most serious writers of

             their time.

They put them in cube after cube to bolster their

             credibility.

I’m like that too. I use my mouth to talk about the cube.

I bleed money. I bleed a stream of money. My crystal lies.

             My static and my lies.

They have begun collecting the most serious writers of

             their time.

They have begun to use their mouths to make some

             money.

I do that too, I’ll tell you right now, I spend most of my

             time in the cube.

I don’t care, I bleed money. A steady stream of money

             from my mouth.

The idea of money makes me high, you know what

             I mean.

And if it turned out some other way than you expected, I

             suggest you make some money.

I suggest you make a sound and make some money.

I suggest you find a way to push your money through your

             mouth.

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