Two Blurbs, Two Books

{ May 23, 2010 @ 3:02 pm } · { Poetry Books }
{ Tags: Christine Klocek-Lim, Rebecca Lauren }

Dedicated readers of The Scrapper Poet know that I am a big supporter of Seven Kitchens Press.  So, I have to report that this past week I received copies of two chapbooks I blurbed.  Yes, of course, I have read both works — but not in finished book format.  Both collections are fantastic.  Here is what I said:

The Schwenkfelders by Rebecca Lauren

Part history, part folklore, part personal narrative, The Schwenkfelders tells the story of a persecuted people and a narrator who seeks answers to the stories of these people.  Blending the past with the present, poet Rebecca Lauren grapples with the questions of how to record family history, while contending with the present.  This collection travels from the outskirts of Hades to the banks of the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania, but no matter where the poet takes us, we will never the lives of a father who sings along the river’s edge, a woman who cures whooping cough with a strand of hair, or even the narrator who skips stories and wishes across still water.

The book of small treasures by Christine Klocek-Lim

Christine Klocek-Lim’s collection relays the lessons of motherhood we all should learn.  Her poetry quietly observes the way children explore our world.  Sometimes, the results are violent and disturbing; other times, there is only beauty.  Step inside this book.  You will want to experience those first swimming lessons, learn what hides in the darkness of caves, understand why it is important to keep dead frogs in the refrigerator, seek beauty in the destruction of a flood.

If you have not yet made your summer reading list, please put these two chapbooks on your reading list.  And if you already have a summer reading list, consider adding both of these works to your list.