Litera


POESIAS: DE HOY Y SIEMPRE is an evening of poetry that speaks of the struggles and triumphs of the Mexican-American community. Sponsored by the Chicana/o Culture Committee of the Texas Union, this is an open reading to be held Nov 28 at 7pm in the Texas Union Sinclair Suite, but you must call 475-6630 to reserve your reading time. Poems in English and/or Spanish are welcome.

DR. KWAME ANTHONY APPIAH, mystery writer, folklorist and distinguished scholar who is currently a professor of Afro-American Studies and Philosophy at Harvard, will present the concluding lecture in the Fall 1995 Distinguished Professors Series on Race and Culture. His speech is entitled "Understanding Racial Identities" and draws form his interests in epistemology and philosophy of language, African philosophy, philosophical problems of race and racism, and Afro-American and African literature and literary theory. The lecture will be given Dec 7 at 7:30 pm in Townes Hall in the UT Law School. Free.

GLOSSO BABEL plays the White Rabbit Nov 28, 10pm and Ruta Maya Dec 6 at 9pm. And I listened to their tape on the deck the other day and it was niiice. Ooh so jazzy, so rain-drenched gritty, so black & white nodding noodle the rain snake iridescent looking for some come slipping out the magic jungle where that alley used to be, so strange the poison when his fangs tapped in so silvery the flakes of metallic dream float down a small room opening up to grand canyon deep space space without end living in a rat infested closet space without end so noodle steamy on a rain-drenched dream.

BUY YER HOT DISCOVERY INCUBATOR tapes featuring John Cutaia, Thom the World Poet, Phil West, Vicki Charleston, Joe Conklin, and many more at your local readery or from Ken Hunt at 478-8535. 90 minutes for $7.99 (first session) or 60 minutes for $5 (second session).

Call for Entries

THE PUZZLE PLACE'S "What Puzzles You" is a national contest sponsored by the PBS pre-school program airing on KLRU weekdays at 9am. They want your 150-word or less description of a real-life situation or "puzzle of life" faced by a three to six-year-old and the solution provided by the parent or care-giver or even the child. Topic suggestions are sharing toys, making new friends, sibling rivalry. Grand prize winner receives round-trip accommodations for four to Hollywood for four days and three nights plus The Puzzle Place merchandise. Other prizes include U.S. Savings bonds, The Puzzle Place merchandise, and The Puzzle Place Guide to Getting Along. Mail entries to: "What Puzzles You?" National Contest, c/o Lancit Media Productions, Ltd., 601 W. 50th St., New York, NY 10019. Deadline: Jan 15, 1996.

HOWIE RICHEY wants poets on his show, preferably with musical accompaniment, but will consider all submissions. Send schtuff to: Howie Richie, KUT Radio/Communication Building B, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712.

SON OF SOLAIRE-INCONGRUOUS # 2 welcomes poets to design an A4 (8-1/2x11) page with their photo, poem, and bio for inclusion in this follow up to Incongruous on Congress. Poets must have read at Café Solaire.

AUSTIN INTERNATIONAL POETRY FEST seeks poets to read in late March of 1996. Send a B & W photo, one poem no longer than a page, and a 50 word bio to: 5003 Lark Cove, Austin, TX 78745-1830 before Dec 15, 1995.
e-mail: conklinj@eden.com

THE AUSTIN WRITERS' LEAGUE and Toad Hall Children's Book Store will present a new award - The Teddy Children's Book Award - for the first time in March, 1996. This $1,000 award and trophy will be presented to honor an outstanding book for children published by an Austin Writers' League member. 499-8914.

STUDENTS IN GRADES 9-12 are invited to submit entries in the Young Texas Writers' Awards Program sponsored by the Austin Writers' League. Twelve scholarships will be awarded to winners in four categories: poetry, short story, essay, and journalism. Deadline is Jan 5, 1996. For guidelines, etc. 499-8914.

Reviews

LEAVE A BEAUTIFUL CORPSE is an anthology representing the work of a writers group whose members are based in Austin and San Diego. As the title suggests the writers are in their 20's and still wrestling with the bummer concept of individual mortality. Now, I know how that feels and normally I wouldn't be so glib, but when the cover blurb and the introduction promise the bold, uncompromising young poets of the future battling back against the oppressive academic scene in a fight for purity of artistic expression by writing about such daring concepts as inflatable dolls, car crashes, strippers, drug addiction, and Dali, I want to ask them in what bleak and barren cave they have been loitering for the last 25 years or so, say give or take a hundred. Such whining is unseemly in poets. You know? Shut up explaining already, and just write your friggin' poems. Now, calm down. There is some good poetry here: Ted Wendt and c. jennings have that promised edge and for the $2 price those poets alone and the cover are worth it. But for the most part, let me say that if you don't like the Academy merely urinating on their walls isn't enough, especially with such low-octane pee. If you can't fucking blow it to the Platonic ether then it really is best to simply ignore it. Remember, winning that grant is often the high point of the grantee's life. Now, is that the kind of life you want to lead? I didn't think so. Let me back up here. Actually it may not be the poets' fault. Perhaps these poets did not write with the underlying purpose their editor has proclaimed for them. It would be wonderful if they did, but they don't. So this critique is henceforth for the editor. Beauty is a hard mistress, unforgiving and ever demanding, by far the most despotic of archetypal energies. Leaving a beautiful corpse still serves a fascistic cause. If you want to be truly revolutionary how about honoring the old, the battered, the ugly and the shunned, that which endures - be the oldest, ugliest, most contrary slab of pissy human meat you can be, be so ugly death has to think twice before she slips her cold steelies into your smelly polyester pants. Not for the inherent inner beauty, you miss the point. Stop pissing and moaning about something you don't like and start cultivating what you do like. We'll all benefit. Even the Academy. Available at the usual readeries.

COMING UP A CLOUD is Darla McBryde's first chapbook. Languid, like a tropical afternoon, the clouds rolling in and dropping their coolness on your lover's upturned face, you on your knees in the sand rubbing your face in her bare belly. In your hand a postcard from a long-lost love or was she a dream or is this or am I remembering a time, a dream time, and love is like that storm rising up every afternoon, and I roll in my siesta time under soft breezes, white diaphanous curtains floating in to caress me. Where is the dreaming surface or is that your cheek grown softer these fleeting years a nap curling in my hand rising as a cloud to teach me in my dreaming of your ever returning love?

WATCH ME FALL TO PIECES - THE BOOK is Janine de Luna-Azul's first chapbook. A Shameless Self Promotion production. Now this woman knows how to blow off the academy. She be uh classic American suburban-educated anger artist. Exploding self-conscious pretentiousness. Po boho po-mo, yu no? Go glow. Cool.

EVERYTHING & NOTHING, a short-short chap by Wayne Alan Brenner, is a hot rush of overdrive caffeinism steered by a revved up stargo-naut heading for the galaxies, waylaid at the bistro. We're all vessels looking for a meaning. It is just so hard to see in this speed of light world ruled by a pandaemonium of shallow images.

Ongoing Readings, Misc.

SISTERS IN CRIME say there will be no Dec meeting, but there will be a Xmas party. Join now so you can attend. 327-3704.

WRITING FROM THE HEART writing group meets every other Saturday, at North Village Library, 2139 W. Anderson Lane. 836-3524.

THE AUSTIN POETRY SOCIETY meets every third Saturday of the month, 10am, in the Howson Library, 2500 Exposition. 345-0776.

MOJO'S DAILY GRIND, 2714 Guadalupe, will be featuring Poetry readings twice a month on
Fridays at the middle and end of each month at 10pm. Leave a poem on Uncle Mojo's Poetry Board (located next to the pay phone) or sign up to read at Uncle Mojo's Poetry Corner anytime before the gig. 477-MOJO.

FORRAYS, 2809 S. First, is the new meeting/poetry venue for the Austin International Poetry Festival volunteers. That's Tuesdays,
6:30-7:30pm for the meeting; then open reading follows. Sign-up for five minute slots. Reading begins at 7:30pm. All poets heard. Free. Refreshments available. 416-1964 or 441-3647.

FLIPNOTICS COFFEESPACE, 1601 Barton Springs Rd., now has three new hosts for the Open Spoken Spew: Spot (1st Wed), David Space (2nd & 3rd Wed), and David Keen (4th Wed). 8:30-11pm. Come & spew yer poetry amateurs beginners pros cons & metas. Sign-up & call-ins @ 8pm, 322-9750.

BATTLE OF THE BARDS at Café Solaire, 717 Congress, on Monday nights at 7pm. There are featured readers and open mike. Open readers have 5 minutes, featured readers have 15 minutes. The audience decides poet of the night. Free. Refreshments available. To be a featured reader call 416-7435.

COFFEEHAUS, the weekly poetry performance program on KVRX 91.7 hosted by Brett Holloway-Reeves and Tom Dowe, features a sampling of local poets and music. They are especially interested in critical submissions and reviews of local books and events. Shows now air Thursdays,
7-7:30pm. Send submissions to: Coffeehaus,
c/o KVRX 91.7, PO Box D, Austin, TX 78713.

SUNSET VALLEY BOOKSTOP Book Discussion Group meets on the second Tuesday of every month at 7pm. Suggestions or hostings to: CMHopper@aol.com or Christine at 892-1580.

BOOK PEOPLE, northeast corner of Sixth and Lamar, upstairs on the third floor, offers free poetry the first Thursday of each month, 7:30-10pm. Host is John Berry. A round robin, open mike follows: one poem, one page, three minutes, then next, round and round we go. Herman Nelson 928-0619 or John Berry 837-8693.

BARNES & NOBLE BOOKSTORE, 10000 Research at the Arboretum offers free poetry the second Thursday of the month in the mezzanine & hosted alternately by John Berry and Herman Nelson of the Auricles of Delphi. Dec 14th features Marlys West, Gale Sprinkle, and Auricles of Delphi member, Herman Nelson. Hosted by John Berry. A poetry workshop hosted by Jill Timmons will be held same place, same time on the 3rd Thursday each month with the next being Dec 21st. Poetry Workshop from 7:30-10pm. Bring 10 or more copies of any one page original poem. Positive feedback will be offered by Ms. Timmons and other members of the Auricles of Delphi. All events sponsored by B&N, Austin Writers' League, and the Texas Commission for the Arts. 928-0619 or 837-8693 for readings; 335-7078 for workshop.

OTHER BARNES & NOBLE EVENTS: the Women's Book Discussion Group, led by Holly Hammett, meets every fourth Wed of the month at 7:30pm (call 477-6318 for next title); the Fiction Book Discussion Group meets the last Monday of each month at 7pm (call Jean Ufford at 502-8468). 418-8985.

RED SALMON PRESS continues its ongoing "poetic action" series with canto libre/open mike sessions and featured readings held on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month. Resistencia Bookstore, 2210-B S. First. 7:30pm. For info, call Resistencia: 416-8885.

POET OF THE NIGHT will also become Poet of the Week when chosen by the audience at Café Solaire, 717 Congress, on Monday nights, 7pm. There are featured readers and open mike. Open readers have five minutes, featured readers have 15 minutes. To be a featured reader call
416-7435. Free. Refreshments available.

THE ELECTRIC LOUNGE hosts spoken word thangs every Friday at 8:30pm with this schedule: 1st Frid is Blue Plates (Pasha, Tammy Gomez, W. Joe Hoppe, Marlys West, Mike Henry, and Robert S); other readings will be specified in their ad each week. All events are $2 with open mike readers in for free. Sign up at 8pm. Remember Wammo on Tuesdays with a slam for cash at 9pm. 476-FUSE.

More Poetry! Play. Loosen up. Exercise those silly muscles. Mope. Get d d d down. lllow. just be in those ashes sinking sinking into soul down to the horrific blackness, the demon guarded blackness that sustains you. Ah! Play there, play low, play slow play pity pity black blood stew. Play as long as you can as long as you want play play loosen up get silly & listen. Listen. Get serious & listen & play low low move into the rhythm of slow low play & in the darkness rise renewed & ready to play seriously silly sillily serious play play shallow to deep honor the depths the shallows the oceans of your encompassing north encompassing south encompassing east west moebius spiral of the spalatial encompassing heart. Play the encompassing embrace. Vaya con dios.

Poem of the Issue

Don't know what else there is to do;

I can't hear you talkin' but I see your lips move.

Like a pieceless puzzle in human form

Like a survivor from some endless storm

Walking to the end of the plank,

And the page still says, "Emotionally Blank."

- Joy Owen, "Emotionally Blank" (an excerpt) from Incongruous on Congress

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