Paul Vangelisti

I enjoyed Paul Vangelisti's memoir/journal/ ars poetica/ cultural bio quite a bit, all the while marveling at how remote from my own realm of experience most of his references are, given that Vangelisti & I roughly share the same generation. My only exposure to Italian poetry, contemporary or otherwise, has been in the pages of OR. As for his tribe of precursors, mentors & friends, names are familiar but few have had any direct impact on my own reading or writing life. I don't mean this as a criticism (I enjoyed the gossip, so to speak, immensely, even if, from my point of view, it concerns strangers) but I was a bit surprised to note that all of Vangelisti's people, excepting a few lovers & relatives, are male. I mention this only because I think it would be highly unlikely, if not impossible, for younger male poets these days to exclusively reference male poets & artists as influences, cohorts, mentors, etc. In this, I find positive change, although the continuing perceived need for all women presses & book contests seems to indicate that sex & gender haven't yet faded into historical obscurity as sorting mechanisms. In sum, a pleasurable read.
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