Three New York Poets

Poetry. Literary Nonfiction. Literary Criticism. Including selected poems from Charles North, Tony Towle and Paul Violi. Edited and with commentary by Andrew McCarron. With a foreword by John Koethe. What is the shape of a life dedicated to poetry--and how, and from where, does such a dedication take hold? Moreover is that foundation a matter of decision, necessity and/or "grace"--or all three to degrees--and what are its costs? Combined with a selection of poems from these three distinguished poets, who together form a core of the Second Generation of New York School poets, Andrew McCarron pursues these questions, and more, through a series of biographical essays addressing each poet's life story and psychological complexion-and what critical insights such gleanings might lead. The poetry alone of North, Towle and Violi--exact in its execution and wide in its--is of enduring value and utility; juxtaposed with and in part seen through McCarron's exegeses, these qualities assume a poignancy that seems to lead us further into an examination of our human fate and of what it's all about: or as Towle writes, "in between the great saga of America, / lying like a lost nickel in New York's platonic gutter." As long as interest in the New York School holds--and in fact continues to grow--THREE NEW YORK POETS will remain an essential guide.