American poet Bill Gainer’s latest book A True Story collects in one volume 171 of his previously published short poems from his classics including ‘Roxy’ (2003), ‘The Mysterious Woman Next Door’ (2008), ‘Louisiana Calling’ (2013), ‘Lipstick and Bullet Holes’ (2014), ‘The Mysterious Book of Old Man Poems’ (2017) & others. He also throws into the mix at the end of the book 25 poems from his latest material.
In his ‘Author’s Notes’ at the beginning of the book, Gainer explains:
“When the folks at Spartan Press asked to do a book
of selected poems, I jumped. My only question was
short poems? Their reply- yes. So here we are,
call them what you want: American Haiku, Minimal
Poems, whatever. I prefer short poems- it’s easy.
“I have long believed the short poem is the hardest
poem to write. The author must get in and get out,
while saying something beyond a journal entry on
the way. Yes, the short poem is written with intent,
depth of thought, economy of words, and in the
tightest of packages. Waste nothing. And that is A
True Story.”
The poems range from one to thirty lines and ALL are of one page maximum. Most poems are observational and Gainer uses anecdotes from ordinary, every day events- such as walking to a coffee shop, watching tv, visiting his doctor to inquire about obtaining a cannabis prescription, receiving a late night call, growing old & the like- to guide and authenticate the experiences of his writing.
Despite its length, the book can easily be read in 1 to 2 hours and certainly merits multiple readings. The writing is fresh, quirky, pared back, intimate, humorous and full of surprises.
Observations of an
Obsessive-Compulsive
The funeral went good
but the cemetery
was maddening
a jumble of headstones
nothing
in alphabetical
order.
I suspect
I was the only one
to notice.
(all poems are posted with the permission of the artist)
Gainer is a gifted writer with a fertile imagination and has a playful but wicked & sometimes a very naughty sense of humour:
Confessing to a Suicide
I’ve been practicing the note
so far
all I can come up with
is
It was me.
Gainer also writes perceptively about passion and is discreet and caring but he also understands its wayward & irreverent ways. Here are two of favourites from the collection:
Connecting with God
I do my praying
in the shower.
Seem to get better
reception there.
I’m feeling the need
now.
Join me.
It’s a small shower
you can kneel
first.
The Motive
She likes
that he does
her laundry
doesn’t realize
he has
his favorites.
These are simple but striking poems born out of the kiln of Gainer having lived a long & loving life.
What I sometimes admire most about his writing, is how he can concisely sum up this wonderful but bag of shit we have been handed, as he expresses in the following short poem:
The Short History of the
Development of Man
It started out slow
then just went
fucking crazy.
Read my review of Gainer’s latest full-length collection of poetry on BMR here: https://georgedanderson.blogspot.com/2018/02/book-review-bill-gainer-mysterious-book.html
Buy the book here: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-true-story-bill-gainer/1140532300?ean=9781952411694
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