It’s a big month for poets and poetry publishers. The Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) holds their annual conference and book fair in Kansas City, Missouri from February 7th to the 10th. Our February 6 new poetry book update will feature work from poets who will be promoting at the conference and doing off-site readings. Unfortunately, PCR won’t be there. I’d like to attend a literary conference, but I don’t think my bad back could handle a flight of any length. There are some exciting changes taking place right here, though. For starters, I’ve removed sections without content from the front page. Ta-da!
Secondly, after a few months with the idea of this publication and a month live, I’ve concluded that far too large a proportion of good chapbooks come from prizes. Oftentimes, publication is the main prize, with little, if any, marketing help. For these reasons, I’ve removed the policy of favoring non-prize winners for critical attention. We’ll read all chapbooks equally to try to find gems for our readers.
Lastly, I am working on producing more editorial content (like the weekly new books post) without an author. This includes publishing poems from recently published or forthcoming collections and response-heavy interviews with poets about their books. While I prefer strong, literary writing, my main goal is to bring attention to poetry chapbooks. I’ll do that in any reputable way I can think of.
In January, we published new work from C.M. Crockford and Matt Bagwell. For February, we have a review of Ben Kassoy’s The Funny Thing About a Panic Attack by Francesca Leader. While we hope to have more reviews from them in the future, our budget and my editing limits can handle more contributors.
I’ve decided to re-open unsolicited submissions early and leave them open until further notice. I believe reviewing is critical to the literary world, bringing reader attention to the hard work of publishers and authors. We’re still also accepting pitches anytime and would be happy to hear from writers interested in being assigned a chapbook to review.
Thanks for reading and spreading the word,
Aiden Hunt
Editor & Publisher
Contents
New Poetry Titles (1/2/24)
Preview new books from Michigan State University Press, Able Muse Press, and Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.
January ‘24: Welcome to Our Beginning
Welcome to the first issue of the Philly Poetry Chapbook Review, January/February 2024! Hear from our editor what we have in store for readers this issue.
New Poetry Titles (1/9/24)
Preview new poetry books from Seven Kitchens Press, Milkweed Editions, Bloodaxe Books, W. W. Norton, University of Pittsburgh Press, Phoneme Media, Coffeetown Books, Central Avenue Publishing, and Archipelago.
Father Figures: Books by Arthur Russell and CooXooEii Black
Aiden Hunt reviews Arthur Russell’s At the Car Wash and CooXooEii Black’s The Morning You Saw a Train of Stars Streaking Across the Sky in this essay, subtitled “Does the Rattle Chapbook Prize live up to the hype?”
New Poetry Titles (1/16/24)
Preview new poetry books from Milkweed Editions, Nightboat Books, Alice James Books, Phoneme Media, University of Arizona Press, The University Press of Kentucky, Madville Publishing, Clare Songbirds Publishing House and Tram Editons.
Chapbook Round-Up: Climate Crisis and Showbiz Blues
C.M. Crockford interviews poets Rae Armantrout, Justin Lacour, and James Croal Jackson and previews their recently published or forthcoming chapbooks.
New Poetry Titles (1/23/24)
Check out new poetry books published in English between 1/23 and 1/29 from Bottlecap Press, Stanchion Books, Graywolf Press, Milkweed Editions, Phoneme Media, Button Poetry, RIZE, Wayne State University Press, Carcanet Press, Fireside Industries and Texas Review Press.
Violence of Craft: Your Mouth is Moving Backwards by Juliet Cook
Contributor Mike Bagwell explores and reviews poet Juliet Cook’s new chapbook from Ethel Press, Your Mouth is Moving Backwards.
New Poetry Titles (1/30/24)
Check out new poetry books published in English between 1/30 and 2/5 from Scribner (Editor’s Pick), Texas Review Press, Bottlecap Press, Kith Books, Slant Books, University of Notre Dame Press, Knopf, Little, Brown and Company, Tupelo Press, LSU Press, Wesleyan University Press, Peepal Tree Press Ltd., Grayson Books and Sourcebooks.
Review: The Funny Thing About a Panic Attack by Ben Kassoy
Contributor Francesca Leader reviews Ben Kassoy’s debut chapbook from Bottlecap Press, The Funny Thing About a Panic Attack.
New Poetry Titles (2/6/24)
Check out new poetry books published in English between 2/6 and 2/13 from Wesleyan University Press, Belle Point Press, Bull City Press, Kith Books, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Coffee House Press, New Directions, Nightboat Books, CavanKerry Press, University of Queensland Press, Green Writers Press, LSU Press, Haymarket Books, Button Poetry, The University of Kentucky Press, Mercer University Press, Knopf, Persea Books and Peepal Tree Press Ltd.
February ’24: Of Conferences and Contributors
A note from editor and publisher, Aiden Hunt, about the AWP Conference, re-opening submissions, and looking for more contributors.
New Poetry Titles (2/13/24)
Check out new poetry books published in English between 2/13 and 2/19 from Kith Books, GASHER Press, Querencia Press, Bottlecap Press, Alice James Books, Penguin Books, Seagull Books, Mad Creek, Wayne State University Press, Deep Vellum Publishing, University of Chicago Press, The Lilliput Press, Able Muse Press, Washington State University Press, University of New Mexico Press and Mosaic Press.
Of War’s Seductions & Consequences: A Chapbook Review
Aiden Hunt reviews Amanda Newell’s I Will Pass Even to Acheron in this essay, the second part of his essay, “Does the Rattle Chapbook Prize live up to the hype?”
New Poetry Titles (2/20/24)
Check out new poetry books for the week of 2/20 from Bottlecap Press, University of Arizona Press, Carnegie Mellon University Press, University of Alberta Press, Nightboat Books, Signature Books, Mosaic Press and Small Harbor Publishing.