Trébuchet

A witty, poignant and articulate collection that is an absolutely necessary read.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to review an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
It was the beautiful front cover which attracted me to this book despite the fact that I rarely read poetry. I am pleased I did because of the variety of interesting themes explored within the collection from torture to surveillance.
From the start it pulled me in with lines like, “these poems were written to land you on a government watch list” and “the middle class will beat itself to death with this book.”
The dancing plague was my favourite poem of this dark and intriguing collection.
“She spoke these words with a hole in her skill in the snow
And her body lying there in the village square so beautiful
The hostiles began to dance on either side of the body.
And they danced until they too fell dead in the snow beside him.”

Trebuchet: Poems by Danniel Schoonebeek is the poet's second collection of poetry. Schoonebeek is the author of American Barricade. In 2015 he was awarded a Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry fellowship from the Poetry Foundation. His work has appeared in the New Yorker, Poetry, Kenyon Review, and Tin House.

There are days when I prove to myself without a shadow of a doubt that my education is in political science and not poetry. I glanced at Trebuchet when I first received it and realized that it was going to be a complex read. Two years ago I received Eric Linsker's La Far and it took me a year to get through it. A rewarding year, nonetheless. Trebuchet is due out in November and my early start began this Friday, just to make sure I finished on time. The writing is complex and thoughts may not always seem complete or maybe more accurately a bit disjointed. I, however, could not put this book down until I finished.

This is a collection where the introduction actually drags you in. I may be dating myself, but it would be like seeing the trailer for "Mulholland Drive," getting psyched by it, seeing the movie and walking out saying that was quite a trip...but to where. Trebuchet is like a lost weekend in print format.

Schoonebeek warns the reader that this book will probably get the reader on a government watch list. He also suggests "trebucheting" the book into the White House. A little physics lesson would reveal that Les Miserables might be a better choice considering the number of pages and F=m*a. The introduction sets the hook and is the most plain-spoken part of the collection. Not that that is a bad thing.

The poems cover a wide range of subjects violence, poverty, fascism, and censorship. The structure on each page is also interesting. ".Gif" fills the page end to end like a NASA stream of 1s and 0s that build a remarkable image. “Glasnost” repeats the troublesome problem of how to get rid of a body. “Laguardia” consists of a few words in each line and tells in part the story of a girl who survived two years as an erotic dancer in an absinthe bar. It also contains references of back streets and a deathtrap that triggered Bruce Springsteen in my mind. The poem " Poem with a Gun to Its Head" is written in compact newspaper columns and include mention of a Marine platoon sergeant.

While this collection remained elaborate in its style it did take me on quite a ride. Much like my earlier reference to “Mulholland Drive” this collection left me exhilarated, stimulated, but scratching my head. It's the most amazing thing that you cannot describe. An adventure in experimental poetry.

In the world of these poems, a reflection of our current world, dystopia is now. Politics are pointless, people disappoint, our communities let us down. Some play with form (in fact a few I have no idea how they would be read aloud, so played around with various ways they might work.) So naturally, I loved them.

Some favorites:

"This Neverender"
<i>"...When I return from you like a failed occupation...."</i>

"Sorrow is My Own Yard"
<i>"...it's history who'll prove me a shrewd man...."</i>

"Glasnost"
<i>"And how do I get rid of a body."</i>

"Archilochos"
<i>"...there's no such thing as a trust fund kid on the battlefield."</i>

"Dark-Eyed Junco Was Her Name"
(this is an amazing long poem with just a few phrases on each page, sometimes, and full verse on others)
<i>"A world it will always begin
when your hostiles

will not let you stay dead."

"Like this

the world began once again for the woman behind the barrier."

"And the world will be finished now.
Because the woman is finished now."

"Now hear a generation begin to churn
in the unerring black."

I loved the cover of this book - it fit in perfectly with the mood and theme of these amazing poems. Talk about an excellent read! I loved dipping in and out of this book - it was such a fascinating and unforgettable book.