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Friday, March 6, 2009

Books Seattle Poetry Chain 15: Julie Larios

Posted by Paul Constant on Fri, Mar 6, 2009 at 12:00 PM

cf46/1236365198-2007-md.jpg Last week on the Seattle Poetry Chain, Rebecca Hoogs shared a playful, funny, intelligent poem with us. This is because Rebecca Hoogs is funny and intelligent (but I haven't checked on the playful part) in real life. This week, she has decided to share Julie Larios with Slog. Here's why:

Julie and I and several wonderful others worked together on a weekly basis for eight years until most of the group scattered to the wind this past year. Luckily for Seattle, Julie stayed here and continues to amaze me with her poetry. She has an alter ego—Julie Larios, the children's book writer, and I highly recommend YELLOW ELEPHANT or IMAGINERY MENAGERIE to young readers everywhere—but I even more highly recommend Julie Larios the wickedly funny, subversive, and irreverent poet. There is no one she will not make fun of (Jorie Graham, I'm looking at you). There is no pretty poetic convention she will not make ugly. She does not like the word "twinkle." She may look like a very sweet lady, but she's not. She's a great poet.

Julie Larios has had fiction published in many different places, including The Best American Poetry 2007. Here is her poem, which utterly charmed me:

2fb9/1236365792-whatbeedid.jpg

Thanks to Rebecca Hoogs, and many, many thanks to Julie Larios. Tune in next Friday at noon to see who she picks for the next link in the Seattle Poetry Chain.

Comments (4) RSS

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This is my favorite Julie Larios poem, called frontotemporal dementia: http://www.elsewhere.org/journal/archive…

Posted by cockamamie velocity on March 6, 2009 at 1:13 PM

It's cute, which is better than self-important.

Posted by Greg on March 6, 2009 at 1:25 PM

bees good. here's a bee song:

A one... two-- A one... two... three... four...
Half a bee, philosophically,
Must, ipso facto, half not be.
But half the bee has got to be
Vis a vis, its entity. D'you see?

But can a bee be said to be
Or not to be an entire bee
When half the bee is not a bee
Due to some ancient injury?

Singing...

La dee dee, one two three,
Eric the half a bee.
A B C D E F G,
Eric the half a bee.

Is this wretched demi-bee,
Half-asleep upon my knee,
Some freak from a menagerie?
No! It's Eric the half a bee!

Fiddle de dum, Fiddle de dee,
Eric the half a bee.
Ho ho ho, tee hee hee,
Eric the half a bee.

I love this hive, employee-ee,
Bisected accidentally,
One summer afternoon by me,
I love him carnally.

He loves him carnally,
Semi-carnally.
The end.

Cyril Connelly?
No; semi-carnally!
Oh.

Cyril Connelly.
[whistling]

Posted by scary tyler moore on March 6, 2009 at 3:10 PM

i love good word play, it's like a bite of rich dessert.

Posted by Maggie Ethridge on March 7, 2009 at 9:09 PM