Methodist Hatchet - by Ken Babstock (Paperback)

About the Book

Marooned in the shiftless, unnamed space between a map of the world and a world of false maps, Ken Babstock's poems cling to what's necessary from each, while attempting to sing their own bewilderment. "Methodist Hatchet" sets the currencies of living, thinking, and writing on a level plain. The symbolic currencies of natural and engineered worlds -- the monetary, cultural, intellectual, and experiential -- mimic, dog, and evade each other in a brilliant play of contingency and consequence. Even the poem itself -- the idea of a poem -- as a unit of understanding is shadowed by a great unknowing. Fearless in its language, its trajectories, and its frames of reference, Babstock's fourth collection gazes upon the objects of its attention until they rattle, and exude their auras of strangeness. It is this strangeness, this mysterious stillness, that is the heart of Babstock's playful, fierce, intelligent book. "Methodist Hatchet" is an exhilarating new work from one of our most celebrated poets.

Book Synopsis

Shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize and the Trillium Book Award

Marooned in the shiftless, unnamed space between a map of the world and a world of false maps, the poems in Methodist Hatchet cling to what's necessary from each, while attempting to sing their own bewilderment. Carolinian forest echoes back as construction cranes in an urban skyline. Second Life returns as wildlife, as childhood. Even the poem itself -- the idea of a poem -- as a unit of understanding is shadowed by a great unknowing.

Fearless in its language, its trajectories and frames of reference, Methodist Hatchet gazes upon the objects of its attention until they rattle and exude their auras of strangeness. It is this strangeness, this mysterious stillness, that is the big heart of Ken Babstock's playful, fierce, intelligent book.

Review Quotes

". . . a dazzling display by a talented writer . . ." -- Barbara Carey, Toronto Star

". . . affecting and deft . . . [a] lasting contribution to Canadian poetry . . ." -- Shane Neilson, Quill and Quire

"[Ken Babstock] is something like a baffled scientist investigating the limits of our comprehension . . . this book's poetic voice [. . .] represents our greatest opportunity to make sense of a seemingly schizophrenic world." -- E. Martin Nolan, Puritan

"Methodist Hatchet is as precise as it is expansive, as complex as it is companionable . . . [Ken] Babstock is one of the most exciting lyric poets writing today." -- Sinya Queras, Globe and Mail

"Methodist Hatchet will be a bellwether for contemporary Canadian poetry . . . [Ken Babstock's poems] invite us to listen more closely, to bring the discernment of reading poems into our habits of reading the world." -- Abby Paige, Rover Arts

"The beauty here lies in its simplicity ... the effect of the book is kaleidoscopic." -- Jennifer Moore, Another Chicago Magazine

"With his new book, it's time to forgo the qualifiers and just call [Ken Babstock] what he is: the best Canadian poet of his generation." -- Nick Mount, Walrus Magazine

"...an outstanding volume - plugged in, polished, complex, and delightful." -- Brian Palmu, SubTerrain