April is Poetry Month. I had some swell "Roger and Nancy" stories to write, about a kayak expedition in the far north, a tent, and a few recited Mary Oliver poems, but the editorial board of the newsletter said that we'd gone to that well enough for now with my recent coconut story. "We're not sure everyone can relate," they said. Well, it's your loss. Instead I'm going to tell about a favorite poetry book that maybe five other people will be interested in.
If
you work at Island Books day after day, surrounded by the weight and
mass of fifty idle, old, black typewriters, it may occur to you that
they have personalities, stories, and lives of their own. It may occur
to you that some mysterious chatter might happen amongst them at night
in the store when no one's about. This sort of unattended consequence
must have been on the mind of Don Marquis, a newspaper columnist at the Sun Dial when he "collected" a book of poems called Archy and Mehitabel in
1916. Archy, the office cockroach, who in a previous life was a free
verse poet, writes by throwing himself headfirst onto each key at night.
He can't operate the shift key to make capital letters, but he manages
to capture after-hours life with Mehitabel the cat (in her ninth life)
and other press room visitors. Archy's a philosopher who lives on stale
paste and sees "things from the underside now." The book is still in
print and I recommend it often to anyone who will listen.
Take a moment to enjoy Archy's "the lesson of the moth." It begins like this:
i was talking to a moth the other evening he was trying to break into an electric light bulb
and fry himself on the wires You can (and should) read the rest of it here. There's lots more where this came from on our poetry shelves.
Warmly, WELCOME TO NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
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Decorate Our Poetry Pole
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APRIL IN PARIS
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Allez-Vous Célébrer Avec Nous?
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PLAY BALL!
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Take Me Out to the Ball Game
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WHAT IS THE INDIE NEXT LIST?
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Curated Reads From the Pros
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HOT TOPICS ON OUR STORE JOURNAL
Reading-Related Rambles
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COUNTER INTELLIGENCE
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Nancy's April Pick: The Burgess Boys
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GET IN TOUCH
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3014 78th Ave. SE MI, WA 98040 (206) 232-6920 Store Hours Mon-Wed: 9:30 - 7:00 Thurs: 9:30 - 8:00 Fri: 9:30 - 7:00 Sat: 9:30 - 6:00 Sun: 11:00 - 5:00 |
Short Story Contest Winners!
We're excited to announce the winners of this year's short story contest! Thanks to everyone who submitted. We appreciate the time, effort, and intelligence you put into your stories, and we’re honored that you shared them with us.
Adult: Steve Workman's Hazel Lassoes the Hoover
Teen: Cecelia Rosenman's All People Want In
Kids: Lauren Novak's The Runaway Hat
Leap for Green
On Saturday, April 13th at 10am, it's time for the Leap For Green Family Fair. Come see what we have in our own back yard: green, healthy, sustainable, and fun living! Island Books will be on hand to share some of the wonderful printed resources available to people who want to explore their community.
Open Book Club
20% Off Indie Bestsellers
Catch up on the titles dominating the indie bestseller lists and save 20% when you order online.
MoreeBooks
Did you know you can download ebooks from our website and read them instantly? Or that we sell top-notch ereaders and tablets ourselves?
Read more about it. You'll be glad you did.
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Island Books | 3014 78th Ave. SE | Mercer Island | WA | USA | 98040 |