[marly youmans]

A nice fat review from poet Rachel Barenblat aka Velveteen Rabbi: http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog...s-thaliad.html.

[Elizabeth Adams]

Originally Posted by marly youmans

Thank you so much--warmth always welcome! I'm hoping it manages to paddle along, despite a long poem being such a rare thing these days.

Marly, do you think that "epic poem" is an outdated term? Or, at the very least, one that may feel daunting to modern readers? Thaliad is an epic poem, but that really means a novel in verse form. I wonder if there are other ways of describing such a book. My husband, for instance, would be unlikely to read an epic poem, but he loved Thaliad, and said he quickly forgot that to was in verse at all!

[marly youmans]

I just posted something about this on my blog and facebook, wondering how to talk about such a poem for the general reader in newspaper articles, on the internet, etc. I'm about to do some articles and feeling a little unsure.

Some say they have no trouble with "epic." Some say it might put people off, as might "novel in verse." "Saga" is mentioned.

The most recent comment from a poet is pretty interesting:

The trouble is that the Thaliad really *is* an epic, whereas no other modern poem I can think of that gets called an epic is anything like one. So what a modern poetry reader expects of an "epic" is "a hideously overgrown, knotted-up lyric poem with pretensions to philosophy, full of learned abstruse allusions that will make you feel stupid. (v. Ezra Pound, Cantos of.)"

I wonder if a "story-poem" might find more readers?

Is "story-poem" appealing in a way that "epic" is not? Saga? Tale in verse? Is he right? Does it all matter?

If anybody wanders back to this thread and has thoughts or advice, I'd love to hear, as I have not made up my mind on the whole issue, and it's time to get out some promised articles.

[Charlotte Innes]

Marly,

I've heard the term "novel in verse." Also, could it be counted as narrative poetry? I'm sorry I haven't read the Thaliad (yet!) so it's hard to judge. It does depend on your audience too, I suppose. I like "story poem" myself, although some people might think that's a short poem. Or you could just say the hell with it--it's an epic, so there, and here's why it's wonderful and different, and why there's nothing else like it! Thinking....

Charlotte

[marly youmans]

Thanks, Charlotte--

Sorry I did not see this earlier! Yes, I think it's a sort of hybrid piece that hews to epic conventions but has a lot of things in common with a novel...

I've discovered that people find "post-apocalyptic" more daunting than "epic," so I am figuring something out!

Painter Marja-Leena Rathje did a post about rereading "Thaliad" yesterday... I've updated the Thaliad page to take into account recent posts/reviews.

[marly youmans]

Here's a little postscript to the thread, for anyone who would like a peek...

Excerpts and comments are up at SCRIBD: http://www.scribd.com/doc/122176425/...ublishing-2012

[Bill Carpenter]

Excellent! I hope that choppy melange of comments and excerpts will encourage people just to get the book. We just read it aloud with great interest and enjoyment. I'm looking forward to reading it aloud again, soon. Best, Bill

[marly youmans]

Thank you, Bill--

I'm tickled (and honored) that you would read it aloud twice!

Brand new fantabulous review:
http://tomcatintheredroom.com/2013/0...marly-youmans/

[Charlotte Innes]

Marly,

You are being reviewed! Fabulous!

And I do hope to see you in Medusa, if at all possible this summer.....

Charlotte

[marly youmans]

Charlotte,

A bit... There are a few other reviews on the horizon. And that's good, as peddling an epic adventure in verse in our time is a downright curious thing to do.

Yes, I hope to see you again in Medusa, although that pitch-black drive through the boondocks of New York was wild. Sometimes I was lost, and sometimes I just thought I was lost...