Taylor Mali poetry

[awhyzip]

Followed a link from muffyjo to poet Taylor Mali's website.

I have found there this poem, and I quite like it:
“How Falling in Love is like Owning a Dog.”

I read all the free samples on his site, and I find that the poems I liked the best have this in common: They all hide a little joke in the first "stanza", then go on to draw interesting parallels that illuminate both sides of the compared subjects. They leave behind the "jokiness" after that one taste and avoid triteness as well.


"Because crooks and muggers think love is unpredictable."

"my father understood combination locks and keys. / Yes, he was a Yale man."

I also very much liked this one, which did not have a joke in the first few lines.

Comments

[lillibet.livejournal.com]

Oh, oh, oh! I love Taylor Mali. About a year ago I spent maybe a month obsessively reading and watching his work, over and over again. I hope you've had a chance to watch his performances--there are several on YouTube. Here's one, which happens to be one of my favorites, along with Tony Steinberg--another fantastic one to watch--and Depression Is a Kind of Fire. Which, now that I think about it, I may need to send to someone. Thanks.