Bruce Hamilton

140 Shorties Ii: [more Verse Bits] Bruce Hamilton

140 Shorties II [More Verse Bits] may be something of an added insistence, or infliction, in the world. The collection's essential motif, which is of a quasi-form that includes evidently interlocking aspects in terms of titles that often blatantly rhyme with each other, might seem hopelessly ingrown and juvenile. The ultimate effect, despite any apparent expressed and re-expressed sadness or misery, is likely to be a very playful back-and-forth sort of thing. The individual versifications, which sometimes internally rhyme and sometimes don't rhyme, and which seldom evince anything very much like standard meter, are brief indeed-no longer, usually, than about 35 words. Here are a couple of samples. WANDER Wander about, and imagine a doubtevidently readyto turn us unsteady. At about-say-dawnforest and lawnpresent a new dewakin to you. Varied surmisesyield new surprises. SQUANDERSquander all moneyprovided by concernsbigger than small. Certain sums ofpotency and powerare, likely, nothingsthat nonethelessmay shimmer hugely. To flip or slipcurrency remainsvery sporting.