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Barrow Street – Summer 2005

Summer 2005

Biannual

Erin M. Bertram

Don’t be deceived by the unassuming cover. Or should I say: be deceived, be very deceived, on account of the delicious merit of surprise. Such is the case with every issue of Barrow Street, and I have to say, I like it that way. Inside the summer issue are 72 poems, 6 poems-in-progress, and 3 reviews. Not bad for 127 pages, even better for $8 an issue. Barrow Street is perfect bound, the heft of a paperback novel, copious, a literary variety show. It seems more discerning than other journals, but by no means to a fault. While Barrow Street is known for publishing established writers bearing lists of publications, most of its contributors are past or present professors, making the journal no more or less academic for it. A cursory curiosity, though worth noting.

Don’t be deceived by the unassuming cover. Or should I say: be deceived, be very deceived, on account of the delicious merit of surprise. Such is the case with every issue of Barrow Street, and I have to say, I like it that way. Inside the summer issue are 72 poems, 6 poems-in-progress, and 3 reviews. Not bad for 127 pages, even better for $8 an issue. Barrow Street is perfect bound, the heft of a paperback novel, copious, a literary variety show. It seems more discerning than other journals, but by no means to a fault. While Barrow Street is known for publishing established writers bearing lists of publications, most of its contributors are past or present professors, making the journal no more or less academic for it. A cursory curiosity, though worth noting. Carl Phillips’s poem “Beautiful Dreamer” could very well be a teaser for his next book, Riding Westward, due out next spring. If not, it’s a nice dream, and a solid poem, more conversational and frank than the contemplative, phrase-fraught style to which most of his readers have grown accustomed. The journal’s finale comprises a trio of reviews of three new poetry collections, one of which, Richard Loranger’s take on Christopher Arigo’s Lit Interim, urged me to search this book out via any means possible. Whether it’s a poetic essay on tone, or a quest for meaning among language and the body, there’s a good chance Barrow Street’s got it. If not, the quest is worth the risk. [www.barrowstreet.org] —Erin M. Bertram

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