Prairie Fire

Lisa Robertson attended the Kootenay School of Writing in Vancouver, which probably accounts for the influence of language writing, particularly that of Lyn Hejinian and Leslie Scalapino, evident in her poetry. Hejinian has written that poetic tension arises as a result of the conflict between the line and the sentence. This is definitely the case with Robertson's writing. Scalapino has taught her to exploit the seams within the tapestry of life.

Last fall, I heard Tanya Chapman read from King at the Vancouver Public Library. It was the beginning of her book tour, and she seemed pretty happy about the whole thing. In fact, one of the things I remember most about the reading is her infectious smile -- that, and the richness of her voice. She charmed us all while she brought us into a world of trailer parks, without stooping to the level of the more-famous Trailer Park Boys.

Jon Paul Fiorentino is a young poet whose work I admire, but his latest for Coach House, The Theory of the Loser Class, doesn't come across as wholly coherent. His warranted attack on our society is achieved by nitpicks, cynicisms, and fractioning already present divisions. Yet how can you not applaud a poet who intones: "Air-conditioner anxiety: flop sweat synchrony, apocrine odour sheathes . . ." Or, "And the conservationists: fossils with power washers." (15) even if you don't know what he's driving at.