Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Beautiful Broadsides in a Pocket




A picture is worth more than a thousand words. Demonstrating that are these images of the tiny, beautiful books that Bob and Sue Arnold at Longhouse create. Each is a miniature broadside of multiple panels, folded into a stiff wrap and banded with an elegant printed strip -- and each, like Mariah Fox's "i am i" and David Budbill's "Nine Taoist Poems" and gems from Bob Arnold himself, such as "Devotion" or "Woodcutter's Autumn," catches the magic of poetry within its bright magic. I especially like the new "Ghazal from the Divan-I Ghalib," a garnet-red folder in which is accordioned a sequence of Sufi verses, such as:

Sleep is his & pride is his & nights are his
upon whose outstretched arm
you scatter, along with your tresses,
your charm.

I'll say no more; go explore the Longhouse poetry offerings at Bob's web site, where he also offers long rambles through music, more poetry, literature, even film: www.longhousepoetry.com

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