In her second collection of poems, K.I. Press reflects on a
great love of books and fictional characters, and of reading,
printing and typography. Her poetry takes existing texts to
thrilling heights, bringing Alice in Wonderland alongside
Jane Eyre and the Bible. Readers will delight in the
caustic silliness of poems like "Slushpile" and "Library," and in
the psychological depth and tragedy of the "Anne and Jane"
sequence.
The act of reading and the imaginative process provide the
foreground of Spine. Reading is at once indulgent and
sharply necessary. One poem tells of books who take on the physical
character of their genre. In another we meet a reader of Proust who
finds herself unable to leave her reading, and in another the sense
of abandonment that comes during a sabbatical from reading, when
"cats no longer sat in my lap, birds sang only when trying to wake
me."
Press''s fascination with reading opens onto a realm where
fictional and historical characters expand beyond their original
texts. The "Anne and Jane" sequence reexamines the heroine''s
position in two well-known novels. In "Joanna" the poet provides a
vivid characterization of typographer Eric Gill and his home life,
from the perspective of his daughter Joan. "The Letters" are fiery
variations on the biblical letters from Paul to several of the
early churches. Here Press combines modern details and a new level
of fervency to recreate the impatience and overwhelming tenderness
of this apostle.
The landscape and populace of this collection take their cues
from contemporary geography and from styles reminiscent of other
periods. Throughout Spine, Press demonstrates a deftness
for shifting between contexts, making Jane Eyre a function of
contemporary female experience and placing mementos of the
twenty-first century inside the Bible.
This book is a Smyth-sewn paperback with cover flaps. The text
was typeset by Andrew Steeves in Eric Gill''s Joanna types and
printed on Rolland Zephyr Laid paper. The cover is printed
letterpress on Fraser Mosaic stock.