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    A Confederacy of Joy
    A Confederacy of Joy
    A Confederacy of Joy
    Ebook125 pages47 minutes

    A Confederacy of Joy

    By Juan-Paolo Perre

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    About this ebook

    Siena Press presents the inaugural release from its Legacy Poetry Series, the debut collection of poetry from author, Juan-Paolo Perre. A work of resounding depth and power. "One can clearly see Mr. Perre’s ancestral bloodline: from Pablo Neruda to Hart Crane, Walt Whitman to Larry Levis and Philip Levine. Each poem clamours with a sure and pervasive vision."

    The Legacy Poetry Series is designed to highlight significant contributions to poetry whether it be a first collection or an established writer; the sole criteria being works of substantial promise and enduring quality.

    The collection will be available shortly in paperback and on electronic media.

    Born in Siena, Italy, Mr. Perre emigrated to London, UK and then to the US (New York City). A noted polymath, he is not only a talented writer but as well an experienced classical concert violinist and pianist as well as a celebrated actor (under the nom d'artiste Adam Alexi-Malle).

    "Whitman-esque in its depth of feeling - an auspicious first taste of a promising visionary poet."

    We are proud to present "A Confederacy of Joy".

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSiena Press
    Release dateApr 1, 2014
    ISBN9780996062121
    A Confederacy of Joy
    Author

    Juan-Paolo Perre

    Born in Siena, Italy, Mr. Perre, author, acclaimed performing artist and polymath, emigrated to London, England and then later to New York City. The recipient of the Legacy Poetry Prize for his debut collection of poetry, "A Confederacy of Joy", he is also the recipient of the Aerodyne, Harriet Hale Wooley and New York Philharmonic grants.He has recently been appointed an editor of the literary magazine, "Il Palio Review."

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      "Persephone herself would find fascination" - San Francisco Book Review

    Book preview

    A Confederacy of Joy - Juan-Paolo Perre

    How To Read My Poems

    You need to be willing.

    And even though a few feet behind you

    The sun, wind and air

    Have never been more beautiful

    And have never been, to this day,

    Better allies for your sweat-misted skin,

    You will still pace ever forward

    Toward the altar of my words

    Because, as we vowed not so long ago,

    Nothing will spoil this day.

    I am not unreasonable.

    There may be times –

    Although few –

    That I tell you plainly that a gingery cat

    Lay idle in a mid-afternoon

    Dusk merely content to have

    Fur, modest claws for clawing

    And a valid expectation for meat, milk or kibble.

    But know this:

    I will ask you to love my words. You will need to

    Love my words and trust me. You will need to trust me

    when I tell you

    That as I walk

    Under a sighing half-moon,

    A river of crushed blood oranges underfoot -

    Or when I find solace in the empathy of green things -

    Grassy stuff that carries the weight

    Of my vexed heart

    Or perhaps, as one condemned,

    I surrender and proceed forward through

    The sweet pinch of careless stinging nettle,

    Wafting to and from

    Downright love

    To absolute injury,

    That there might be substance there.

    A Shepherd’s Work

    We all have flocks of words to tend

    In our care who live to make their way

    Over the uneven cresting ridge grazing on

    Blades of grass still warm from a late orange sun.

    Some stay well inside the woven gate, some just beyond

    too suckling for stretches of freedom

    Wiry coarse coats, fine and thick,

    Limbs that grow sturdier on every trot.

    There are those agèd and unruly,

    There always are -

    Bolting like sonic bats out of hell for a time erratic and free

    Threadbare, ravaged giving sideways glances back to their young.

    Some will turn to take their place, some escape

    too old for herd to wait.

    A Map of the Poem

    Long before the deep pain’s cure

    from the soothing verve of the primping noun.

    Before a remedy for a heart sorting out

    the lost and found.

    Before the vaccines of verbs

    to build immunity against resistant strains

    of some sharp sorrow

    or a joy one can’t contain

    Long before the x-rayed work

    of eager grads

    weak and underfed in research

    or unwilling test subjects, trial cases, guinea pigs

    it starts with a title - a

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