Description:
This is the universe we inhabit: a universe that has produced both David Bowie and James Baldwin, Klingons, Publisher’s Clearinghouse sweepstakes, E.T., and Garbage Pail Kids. We coexist alongside goddesses, meteors, parolees, anorexics, acid attack victims, refugees, circuses, reservation casinos, fantastic beasts, and a dwindling water supply. In REQUIEM FOR A ROBOT DOG, Lauren Scharhag considers the existence of angels and aliens equally plausible. She explores the dawn of the third millennium with all its darkness and light, bringing both the mythical and the mundane under her lens. Technology is both our bane and our solace, the conduit for human connection and facilitator of further alienation. Sure, there’s poverty, disease, and the bees are all dying, but there is also love, loyalty, and compassion, even if it comes in the form of a robotic canine. So come trip the rift. Find God. Find hope. And say a prayer for the dearly departed.
Here is a sample poem from the collection:
Amen
I want to worship the quiet gods,
the ones who blush before they speak
and hesitate before they offer a compliment
because they’re only too aware
of how it will reveal
their uncommon depth of feeling.
I want to worship the tired gods,
the ones coming off a twelve-hour shift,
who can’t stand up on the bus and will go to bed
still wearing their uniform.
I want to worship the humble gods,
the ones who are enraptured by the tiny
and imperfect: a Muscovy duck’s raw wattles,
the pattern of brain coral, the dandelions,
the ones who think that facial features
are only enhanced by the presence
of a port-wine stain birthmark.
I want to worship the true gods,
givers of water and repose,
the ones who make sure the electric bill
is in before the late fee and stops dinner
from burning in the oven while you’re busy
giving the cat his medicine.
If you would be interested in receiving a review copy, let me know. I'd be happy to hook you up.
Cheers, everybody! Time to celebrate!
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