Jazz Me is Lennart Lundh's tenth book of poetry. Continuing his overarching themes of love and loss, war and peace, the selected prose poems found here are by turn personal and universal in their examination of what it means to be human."The prose poems of Jazz Me resonate within a reader like the song of a struck bell. When the poems aren't haunting the reader, they are busy delighting. Lennart is a scientist of the unsaid, a Maestro of unmentionables. The duty of a fine book is to take the reader -- heart, body and mind - ...
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Jazz Me is Lennart Lundh's tenth book of poetry. Continuing his overarching themes of love and loss, war and peace, the selected prose poems found here are by turn personal and universal in their examination of what it means to be human."The prose poems of Jazz Me resonate within a reader like the song of a struck bell. When the poems aren't haunting the reader, they are busy delighting. Lennart is a scientist of the unsaid, a Maestro of unmentionables. The duty of a fine book is to take the reader -- heart, body and mind -- on a journey tothat place one desires to stay just one more moment. Jazz Me fulfills, satisfies its duty."Frank Rutledge: Clothed in August Skin"Like the characters of his prose poetry, Lennart Lundh writes with a clear punctuation: strong and assured. In Jazz Me, you will find clips, vignettes really, of both dreamers and realists, vividly painted and lushly described. But you will also find moments, like those in "Being Human," that leave you a little knocked over, a little out of breath and holding close to the poignancy of these shared moments."Jen May: Battle Cry"From opening poem to closing poem, Jazz Me plays like a mind-blowing set--the kind one used to find in old, famous, battered bars, where only the best played. The intelligence of choreographed improvisation fuels this book. Each section, each poem, leads by unexpected notes, into the next. We need more poets like Lennart Lundh; we need more books like this."Lucy M. Logsdon: The Burning Girl; former Program Coordinator, The National Book Awards"From the pen of accomplished and most prolific poet Lennart Lundh comes Jazz Me, a treasured collection of inspiring, thought-provoking poems that hold universal appeal and resonate with the soul. Lundh's latest contribution to his chest of literary gems is not to be missed. Amazing not only is the volume of Lennart's offerings, but the sheer quality of his tone that shines like a light throughout his work. We should expect to hear more, much more, from this masterful, gifted writer and speaker."Wayne Mutza: The Fire Within"This beautifully written, original collection of poems in prose strikes out for new territory, taking the prose poem in a more confessional direction, yet the at times painful, at times positive nature of the work does not, like much poetry, become self-centered. A superb and moving read."Chuck Taylor: Poet and Vampire (a gothic novel of poems in prose)"It takes a poet with a musical spirit to pull off an entire book of prose poetry. Lennart Lundh proves his spirit can sing in his new prose poem collection Jazz Me. Lundh's many voiced speaker moves through a series of astute observations about the human condition using a physical "...banter that turns into butterflies hatched / from the arching passion in [our] bell[ies] and hips and spine[s]..." Lundh's unflinching observations on aging and its challenges leave wonder in their wake and the reader nodding in affirmation that both sorrow and joy maintain footholds on this always uncertain terrain of love and loss we call living."Joani Reese, editor, essayist, and author of the poetry chapbooks Final Notes and Dead Letters and a full hybrid collection of prose and poetry, Night Chorus, from Lit Fest Press.
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(review by Tom Roby IV, author of Pressure Points)
Lennart Lundh's new book of prose poems, JAZZ ME, jazzed me with its good looks, logical framework, and adroit language. His thirty poems are neatly organized into three equal sections that define the workings of love in our lives through loss, pursuit, and reconciliation.
The first poem is told by Lilith, the wanderer, ever incomplete, while in the last one the poet accepts in a found photograph the unexpected gift of completeness from a lover who left him the formula for love's endurance. Within this arc, Lundh explores the narrative possibilities in a dazzling variety of challenging persona poems--female and male; young and old; objective and subjective; first, second, and third person. They dialogue with each other within and between poems, exploring the ways of connecting and separating until we become complete and completed in our attitudes and actions.
Characters are unexpected and sharply drawn: an aging Russian movie actress reflects on the meaning of the werewolf for the characters in her film; Fifi, barely a teenager and a prodigy circus performer, speculates on her dim prospects for love; a man won't reveal to his present lover that a portrait in his possession pictures a former one. Moreover, there is acrid bitterness, raging rants, delightful riffs, and deep sorrows. But there is also humor and poignancy.
Lundh focuses such stories on their emotional essence in lean prose, memorable images, and poetical syntax that reveal unexpected insights. Rereading is well rewarded. If you are looking to be jazzed, look no further.
