I like Crag's summer reading list immensely. I enjoy knowing what other writers are reading period. it is very useful and often opens doors to writers previously uknown to me. I take my reading very seriously, I get a tremendous high from it, and I read something everyday.

serious reading does not mean it is done without play. and when I consider all that I read, like you, I'm astonished by the sheer weight of it. I love superabundance and would rather have too much than a paucity of good writings. I am, might I confess it, a fucking junky and need a daily fix or four. why else, indeed, would I enjoy reading the lists of other writers.

so dear poet/readers, what is on your lists? reading is for all times and occassions. the only thing I consider a summer activity is blissed-out, retarded exploitation films, the kind I used to see at drive-ins when I was a pup in the 70s. I love the 60s beach films, and make no apologies for it. watching numbskulls like Avalon and Funicello sing about their love while the honest-to-god genius of Buster Keaton acting like a buffoon in the background is a smartly placed speedball in the artery. geezus, freak!

so here is a partial list of the books I've been reading and also rereading the past couple of weeks. I reread all the time. usually I pick up a book and read a page or two, or a poem or three as I move through a room in the house. the list doesn't include the print and online journals, newspapers, blogs, listservs and google searches.

Behave, Rant 66 by Steve Tills
ode ode by michael farrell
Ring of Fire by Lisa Jarnot
Menage a Trois with the 21st Century by Eileen Tabios
Collected Poems by Tom Raworth
The Little Door Slides Back by Jeff Clark
Madonna Anno Domini by Joshua Clover

* * *

and non-poetry books.

Sleazoid Express by Bill Landis and Michelle Clifford
Skin Shows by Judith Halberstam
Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain

* * *

and music too.

Mommy's Little Monster by Social Distortion
Beastie Groove by the Beastie Boys (oh man, my oldest friend brought this over Sat. night. it is the first EP by the Beasties, released by Def Jam in 1985. in it they sample AC/DC and Led Zeppelin and it is fucking far-out. haven't heard it in years. the record is vinyl and to my knowledge has not been released as a CD. the record also is untitled so I call it by one of my favorite songs. c'mon Beasties release it already!)