You will find a variety
of subject matter in Meraz’s latest chapbook collection of 12 titleless, free verse
poems- ironic poems about relationships & the need for solitude, short
portrait poems about quirky women and poems about Meraz’s writing life. As in all of the front covers in this Punk Chapbook series, the illustration is created by the warped mind of the Swedish artist, Janne Karlsson.
This chapbook is
loosely structured on Meraz’s motif of women appearing in his work wearing black. In one of the better poems below, it is interesting how Meraz distinguishes various
shades of black in his female companion & how he is able to create an apt, emotive metaphor to personalise his experience:
She
comes in
Dressed
in black
But
a warm
Black
Not
a rebellious
Black
Sweater
and a scarf
Warm
cotton pants
She
says “hello”
In
that same voice that
Has
always captivated you
A
dark welcoming
Presence,
a cozy
Nook,
not light
Or
glamour, not today
At
least, but something
Warm
like a cup of
Tea
on a cold night
When
you’re
Lonely.
(reprinted with the permission of the author)
Mike Meraz’s Back in
Black is Punk Chapbook #11 in the 2014 Tree Killer Ink series. Buy the chap
& other titles here: http://www.epicrites.org/tree-killer-ink.html
Mike Meraz lives & writes in Los Angeles. For more meat from Meraz’s smorgasbord try his book 43 here from Epic Rites Press: http://www.epicrites.org/books.html
