Friday, June 26, 2015

Ghost on the Inside - by John Dorsey (CC#72)

Crisis Chronicles Press is pleased to present Ghost on the Inside, a new chapbook by John Dorsey published 27 June 2015.  It features the poems "steel city rope-a-dope," "icarus revisited," "sheboygan sean," "brian on n. 6th  street," "sheboygan 1," "sheboygan 2," "at 37: for mikey west," "harry’s diner poem: for mj taylor," "in his 60's," "on oak street: for everette maddox," "steve goldberg death poem" and "poem for christian o’keeffe."  As D.R. Wagner has said of John Dorsey, "Boy, this guy means it. What a fine poet, ladies and gentlemen."

Ghost on the Inside is 5.5" x 8.5", hand assembled, saddle stapled, with cover image by Steven B. Smith on white cover stock with black card stock endpapers and the poems printed on pale cottonwood paper.  Only $6 from Crisis Chronicles Press, 535 Parkside Blvd., Cleveland, Ohio 44143 USA.
 
 

Please choose US or International

ISBN: 978-1-940996-23-3. Only a few copies remain.

John Dorsey is the author of several collections of poetry, including Teaching the Dead to Sing: The Outlaw’s Prayer (Rose of Sharon Press, 2006), Sodomy is a City in New Jersey (American Mettle Books, 2010), Tombstone Factory (Epic Rites Press, 2013), Natural Selection: Early Poems (Kilmog Press, 2014) and Imaginary Foxholes (Rusty Truck Press, 2015). His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. He may be reached at archerevans@yahoo.com.

Join us for the official release celebration on 27 June 2015 during Sylvania Avenue Performances in front of the West Toledo Library.

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Matilda's Battle Waltz - by Tracie Morell (CC#70) - Free E-Book

Matilda's Battle Waltz is a powerful new collection of poems by Tracie Morell, illustrated by Kris Risto, featuring wraparound cover art by Ken Paul Johnson. Perfect bound, 5.5" x 8.5", 89 pages, ISBN 978-1-940996-22-6.  $10. The paperback is currently out of print.
 
UPDATE: As of August 2021, we have reissued this collection as a free e-book. Read Matilda's Battle Waltz on Issuu or email jc@crisischronicles.com for a pdf copy.
 
“Tracie Morell’s work exhibits a lyrical acuity which illuminates and devastates. She leads us on a harrowing and electrifying journey through the life of Matilda, a being who dances on the brink of existence between what is marginalized and what has risen above to live in rarified air. Morell has no fear; our eyes blaze and dilate with Matilda, as we bear witness to our collective ruin. Morell’s poems celebrate the connections between the interior and exterior world and in doing so, take us closer to both.”
     —Kelly Boyker, Poetry Editor at Menacing Hedge 

“Tracie Morell is the patron saint of every woman that is tough, beautiful...and pissed off. The thing I admire about her the most is, she doesn't bitch about life's short comings, she resolves conflict with a love that is bulletproof. Matilda's Battle is her recent attempt at reminding the world that if you want to be happy...you better ask questions.”
     —Danny Klecko, author of Houdini in St. Paul

These are not to be read with eyes — it takes but a few lines before you feel her words writing themselves into you, burning the beauty and the pain on the insides of your eyelids and the long bones of your ribcage. Tracie's poems are scrimshaw and snowflakes: permanent, yet glittering."
     —Amanda Gowin, author of Radium Girls 

"Reading Matilda’s Battle Waltz is succumbing to a mesmerizing liturgy of literary moves that includes Matilda’s pontifications, navigations, poetic landscapes, work woes, and foreign loves. The reader travels the path of a most beautiful way of living that does not deny or distinguish between the glorious and the seedy, but sees each poem as a song, a part of the poetic whole. Indeed, the roots of Matilda’s experience grow with you upon every read and you find yourself tapping your foot to her poetic rhythms as the highs and lows pull you into her life’s dance."
     —Kathleen D. Gallagher, author of I See Things are Falling

Click here to read Ron Hayes' review of Matilda's Battle Waltz at Five Writers.
Click here to read Juliet Cook's review
of Matilda's Battle Waltz at Menacing Hedge.
Click here to see ratings and reviews at Goodreads.

Tracie Morell — by Kris Risto
Tracie Morell was raised on the savannah by a pack of feral gazelles. At a young age, she learned to bend iron bars with naught but her teeth and sheer determination. During her school years, she consistently wowed her teachers and mentors with her ability to dodge skepticism while performing feats of whimsical magic. In adulthood, she has birthed miniscule acrobats who assist her in her day-to-day tasks of smashing the banality of various poverties. In her spare time, she enjoys semaphore, scrimshaw, collecting rejection letters, and working on cars for the love of artistry and craftsmanship, despite her loathing of vehicular landscapes and the smell of ethanol. She resides in a land beyond your reach. Only Ben Frasier knows how to find her.  

Join us for the official book launch for Matilda's Battle Waltz on Friday June 12th 2015 at 5:30 p.m. during Poets and Painters at PACA, 1505 State Street in Erie, Pennsylvania.  

The launch event will feature poetry readings by Marisa Moks-Unger (whose chapbook, Mud and Stars, will be released that night by NightBallet Press), Tracie Morell, Shawn King, Veronica Hopkins, Juliet Cook, Dianne Borsenik and John Burroughs - plus music by Rodger Montgomery and an exhibition of work by Kris Risto and Ken Paul Johnson.  Not to be missed!

Saturday, June 6, 2015

Endgame?

As we approach our 7th anniversary of publishing great independent literature, Crisis Chronicles Press is super duper grateful to our authors, to everyone who's bought and read a book, and to all who've stood behind us since we started this on 7 July 2008. We especially thank the following folk, whose support has gone above and beyond and without whom we wouldn't have been able to make it this far: (in alphabetical order) Chandra Alderman, Dianne Borsenik, Christina Brooks, Chansonette Buck, Geri Lynne Burroughs, Shelley Chernin, Frederick T. Courtright, Nancy Jill Franklin, Alex Gildzen, Virginia Hanna, Meribeth Hutto, Alan Kleiman, Jim Lang, William Merricle, Helen Shepard, Steven B. Smith, D.R. Wagner and Dawn Ward. Though all things are subject to change, in the coming 13 months, we plan to publish 30 more great books, then (unless we can find a way to make this more sustainable without sacrificing our principles) go on what might be a permanent hiatus from bookmaking around our 8th anniversary (7 July 2016). Thanks for staying in the car with us throughout this thrilling (and sometimes bumpy) journey. And I hope you enjoy the rest of the ride, wherever it goes.

Peace, love and poetry,
John

P.S. I still have 13 Ninesense chapbook submissions to make a decision on, and I plan to get that done this coming week.  Thanks for your patience!

P.P.S.  Check the left sidebar to see all our Crisis Chronicles Press titles.  We plan to retire the first ten this summer, so get them while you can.


[UPDATE, 21 January 2017:] We're still kicking, though I'm still behind due to my virtually living at doctors' offices and the hospital during my wife's more-than-two-year liver disease struggle. She nearly died more than once. But I am pleased and grateful to report that she has recently gotten a liver transplant and is gradually recovering. A new blog entry with a further update on the current state (and future) of the press is forthcoming.

[UPDATE 7 June 2017:]  Alas, my wife passed away most unexpectedly in February. I'll catch up with the press as I can and then decide where to go from there. Thank you for your patience and kind support.]