Featured Literary Event: Desert Pets Jess

Desert Pets Jess at The Rocket Science Room

Reviewed by Kian Vaziri-Tehrani

On the evening of Thursday July 27th, the Rocket Science Room (a lovely loft space in Little Italy, Montreal) held the Desert Pets Press chapbook launch of Jessie Jones‘s Nix, Jess Taylor‘s Just Pervs, and Jessica Bebenek‘s Fourth Walk, hosted by Catriona Wright.

Catriona Wright

The eager crowd of roughly 40 came to a hush as author and co-founder of Desert Pets Press, Catriona Wright, took to the stage. Introducing the three Jess’s and thanking Vallum’s Leigh Kotsilidis for providing the venue, she went on to cite the Urban Dictionary definition of “Jess”, claiming it to be the name of “most kind, beautiful, and nicest person you could ever meet.”

Jessie Jones and a curious polar bear

The first of the three Jess’s was Jessie Jones, poet and co-founder of the writing service Literistic. Her warm tone and deeply personal poems from Nix evoked memory, self-reflection, and past and present selves. In a comedic, frustrated tone Jessie explained the rationale behind one of her poems by referencing the “Yes” and “No” dance manifestos, specifically highlighting the satiric “Maybe Manifesto,” which she claimed, in disbelief, ends with the lines “Maybe yes, maybe no.” On self-transformation, a major theme of her work, Jessie left the audience with the heavy lines:

“you were once/
and will be again, were once, will again”

Jess Taylor

Next, Catriona introduced Toronto writer and poet Jess Taylor, who jokingly noted upon reaching the stage how the ocean documentary being projected behind synced up perfectly with the readers lines. Her confident, clever voice shone as she read selections from her chapbook Just Pervs. The story, she explained, is told from multiple points of view. She first read as Jill then as Jenade. The central theme of her work is sex, and Jess approached the subject without limitation, exploring its effect and influence on the lives of her characters with subtle humour and poignant realism.

Jessica Bebenek

Finally came Jessica Bebenek‘s turn to read, who, along with being a poet and essayist, coordinates the Centre for Expanded Poetics. She began by mentioning the passing of her grandfather as the main inspiration and driving theme behind her collection, noting in particular the cyclical nature of her work as an allusion to the course of death. Her poems dealt with grief, pain, and death with beautiful, heartbreaking detail. Her soft, melancholic tone worked in perfect, somber tandem with her descriptions of bodily and emotional decay.

The night of fantastic poetry was elevated with a surprise cocktail in honour of the Jess’s made from Soupson’s ginger pear juice, Kraken Black Spiced Rum, lime juice, served in a sugar rimmed glass!

Despite sharing the same first name, each of the three Jess’s readings were vastly different, captivating, and evoked a range of emotions. I admit, though Jess and Jess were great, my favourite of the night was…Jess!

To read more about Desert Pets Press and the amazing chapbooks they publish, visit their website.

Find Jessica Bebenek‘s poem “The World Without” in Vallum 14:1 “Evolutution” here.

Vallum magazine is also available in digital format. Featuring additional content such as: AUDIO and VIDEO recordings of selected poets, further poems, interviews, essays, and MORE!

Download the FREE APP and FREE SAMPLE EDITION for your tablet, kindle or smartphone through PocketMags OR iTunes.

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Featured Literary Event: Knife|Fork|Book at Monastiraki

Knife|Fork|Book at Monastiraki

Reviewed by Kian Vaziri-Tehrani

On Saturday June 25th, Monastiraki held the Knife|Fork|Book poetry chapbook launch of Jeff Kirby‘s She’s Having a Very Doris Day and Jonathan Garfinkel‘s Bociany (Storks) which featured readings by the two author along with poet David Bradford.

Walking into Monastiraki (for the first time I might add) I was struck by its quaintness and the subtle elegance of what it had on display, with a vintage Conan the Barbarian comic and a How do You Say it in Chinese? guidebook particularly catching my attention. It wasn’t long before a few familiar faces popped up, like fiction writer Guillaume Morrissette and poet Klara du Plessis. But of course, the afternoon belonged to Kirby, Garfinkel, and Bradford, who were making the rounds through the shop, mingling and chatting before their readings.

David Bradford

Kirby first introduced David Bradford, who read a handful of poems, some of which appear in his chapbooks A Star is Boring and the upcoming Call Out (Knife|Fork|Book, October 2017). Bradford read in a slow and purposeful tone, one which demanded precise attention to every single spoken word. This was most apparent as he read “Why Can’t We Live Together”, with peculiar and striking lines like:

“…Black squirrels sparkling
like warm steak knives for my twix bars”

and

“Wheezy stardust sucking on gold cellophane
where they buried the garrison in a gravel pit”.

Jeff Kirby

Next up was Kirby himself, who, before even beginning to read seemed overjoyed to share this moment with the standing crowd of smiling faces. His excitement was infectious; his voice, resonant. Kirby’s selected reading from She’s Having a Doris Day was inviting, warm, and eye-opening. Each spoken verse carried the emotions of the poet. His work explored themes of gender identity, homosexuality, love, and loss. Heavy stuff, admittedly, but the personal struggle was counteracted with just the right balance of biting humour. His shortest poem, entitled “Pink,” simply read:

“Why not orange?”

Jonathan Garfinkel

Finally, it was Jonathan Garkinfel‘s turn, and with two amazing readings preceding him, my expectations were high for the poet and playwright. As he delved into his past experiences travelling far across the globe, particularly of the time he lived in Poland, Garfinkel spoke and read in a tone that lingered, much like the lingering images of the human condition he paints in his poems. The last poem Garfinkel read from his chapbook, entitled “Bociany (Storks): After Chełmoński,“was featured in Vallum’s 14:1 “Evolution” issue. Combining the mystical with the concrete, the final lines of the work are haunting, beautiful:

“He believes in proximity, worms
piling off the highway.
He coalesces dreams of black turtles
swimming in fetid waters.
He wants them to call him.”

Lovely Knife|Fork|Book Cake

Of course, the real star of the show was this cake that I happened to be standing next to for the entire reading. Though it was calling to me incessantly, with it’s shiny green frosting and red gum-drops, I left before having a slice…

To read or hear more about these fine chapbooks visit Knife|Fork|Book’s website.

Find Jonathan Garfinkel’s poem in Vallum 14:1 “Evolutution” here.

Vallum magazine is also available in digital format. Featuring additional content such as: AUDIO and VIDEO recordings of selected poets, further poems, interviews, essays, and MORE!

Download the FREE APP and FREE SAMPLE EDITION for your tablet, kindle or smartphone through PocketMags OR iTunes.