E. Tracy Grinnell

In an issue featuring recent Polish poetry, the work of post war poet Miron Bialoszewski is a revelation. And, frustratingly out of print elsewhere (in translation, that is). I also enjoyed discovering Ewa Chrusciel ("For a moment white albatrosses fall from the sky and become their own species of nouns;") and Monika Mosiewicz ("Gaps, inaccuracies, errors--/ I look after everything, in order to remember:/ when you turn a corner,/ there's a bending of light"). Overall, I found the current issue of Aufgabe a tad less exciting than its predecessor (#8). Aufgabe is certainly a hefty tome. At 405 pages, it's a daunting undertaking in journal-reading. Its sheer size guarantees that not every poem will intrigue. But among those whose work I did find fresh and interesting I'd include Julia Bloch, Laura Elrick, Rob Cook, Linnea Ogden, Jasmine Dreame Wagner, Stefani Barber, Celina Su, James Grinwis, Stephanie Young, Ouyang Yu and Brenda Ijima.… (mere)