Books We Love // Poetry! Poetry! Poetry! by Peter Davis

RYAN - One of my favorite things about the writing process is the way in which I slowly fade behind the words I choose. It’s nice, from time to time, to hide inside of the narrative and let flourish those little extensions of myself that I otherwise suppress. I’m no poet, but I’ve always been fascinated by the medium’s striking use of imagery and metaphor, those tools that help connect writer and reader in a shared experience of something more than mundane. 

That said, I simply couldn’t put down Peter Davis’ Poetry! Poetry! Poetry!, a collection of metapoetry that does away with any such pretense. Davis doesn’t hide behind his words and he makes no attempt whatsoever to provide the reader with some kind of theoretical, rosy middle ground upon which his ideas might be engaged. It’s not what the typical reader is expecting going into a poetry reading experience. A sample, for some context:

POEM ADDRESSING WAYS THAT I AM ANXIOUS AND NEEDY

It is possible that you don’t enjoy this poem because you have legitimate problems with the ideas and issues inherent in this poem. It is more likely that you don’t enjoy this poem based on an aesthetic difference of opinion. That sort of thing happens. I hope you won’t think less of me because of this.

And so these poems aren’t about anything beyond the explicit subject they address. There’s no flowery language, no complex imagery. The entire collection is instead based upon Davis’ insecurities, his hopes, and his aspirations. When the mood strikes him to write something that may result in the reader thinking he’s particularly smart or clever, he writes a poem that says little more than “I want you to think I’m particularly smart or clever.” My first reaction to these kinds of pieces is just to laugh. I laugh until I cry as I skim through the work because this kind of naked, shameless exposure of the proverbial Writer’s humanity is unexpected and foreign. Because we want our authors to be a little more than human, don’t we? I know that I do. Despite the appeal of good writing being for me the way it removes me from or reacquaints me with the human condition, I like to believe that the voice speaking those words is a little better than me, a little wiser, a little stronger.

Despite all that, I felt connected with Davis throughout this book in a very real way. We didn’t need simile to meet each other halfway. When I read pieces such as Poem Addressing People Reading This Underwater, I wished that I was indeed under the ocean to appreciate the potential beauty found in the theoretical and often ridiculous situations that Davis envisions. This book is a virtual tour of Davis’ head and absolutely nothing is off limits. For that reason, it accomplishes the most intimate aims of poetry and the written word in general. It’s not metapoetry for modernism’s sake. It works because it’s raw and it’s real and it challenges the reader to examine their own humanity and be, for once, truly honest both with themselves and with their world. The example Davis sets is strong; he has no problem pleading for legitimate reviews, talking himself up to potential employers or suggesting that someone pay him for a reading. And why should he? His personal website is appropriately titled Art Is Necessary, and I got a real sense from engaging this book that Davis truly believes that. His desire for patronage comes through clearly and works quite effectively to show us that poetry isn’t free. We can’t expect there to always be art to enjoy, literature to challenge and music to inspire if we don’t take the time to understand artists and support them in their craft. 

And that’s exactly why this book was on the top of my priority list to review. It’s well-written, it’s brave and it deserves some attention. Go buy it now. Go read it now and go tell your friends about it.

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