In Tributaries, Kurt Luchs chooses twenty poems that hold vital meaning for him as a reader and writer—many, but not all, recognized as classics—and pays twofold tribute to them. First, he explores each poem with a deep-diving personal essay on how the poet works their magic upon us. Then he gives a tribute poem of his own, in response to, or inspired by, the poem under discussion. The result is a uniquely well-rounded, multidimensional way of honoring great poems, unlocking more of their treasures for both first-time and long-time lovers of poetry. Poets featured are Wallace Stevens, Robinson Jeffers, David Ignatow, Philip Larkin, D. H. Lawrence, Etheridge Knight, Wislawa Szymborska, Lucille Clifton, Gabriela Mistral, H. D., Jorge Luis Borges, Federico Garcia Lorca, Mary Oliver, Lewis Carroll, Kenneth Koch, Homer, Louise Glück, Robert Bly, Charles Simic and James Tate.
Notices
“A wonderful idea. After acute and lucid close readings of twenty (mostly) free verse poems by (mostly) modern poets, Luchs then writes a poem of his own by way of homage and celebration. His intelligence, taste and instincts are fully deployed in this incisive, witty, engaging and very entertaining guide.”
—David Collard, author of A Crumpled Swan
“What Kurt Luchs experiences when encountering certain poems is more than affection, it’s undisguised ardor. Companionably, refreshingly witty, he writes about poems as a labor of love. If you’re feeling a bit numb lately to the power of poetry, his marvelous entries may reignite your enthusiasm and peel away any timidity about writing your own poems. Throughout, Luchs’s entries are both disarming and deeply felt.”
—Lee Upton, author of Wrongful and The Day Every Day Is
Kurt Luchs was born in Cheektowaga, New York, grew up in Wheaton, Illinois, and has lived and worked all over the United States, mostly in publishing and media. Currently he’s based in Kalamazoo, Michigan. His first poetry publication came at age 16 in the long-gone journal Epos, right next to a poem by Bukowski. He wrote comedy for television (Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher and the Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn) and radio (American Comedy Network), and contributed humor to the New Yorker, the Onion and McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, among others. His poetry chapbooks include One of These Things Is Not Like the Other (Finishing Line Press 2019), and The Sound of One Hand Slapping (SurVision Press 2022). He won a 2022 Pushcart Prize, a 2021 James Tate Poetry Prize, the 2021 Eyelands Book Award for Short Stories, and the 2019 Atlanta Review International Poetry Contest. He is a Contributing Editor of Exacting Clam, the literary journal from Sagging Meniscus. More at kurtluchs.com and on Facebook.