Poetry. "Reading Travis Cebula''s engaging, dynamic new collection of poems
DANGEROUS THINGS TO PLEASE A GIRL, I am reminded of Michelle Naka Pierce
speaking of intimacy across vast distances, the way language connects or
longs, as here Travis Cebula''s travelogue poems stretch their tender
tendrils out towards their listener, at once Angel, the addressee, and the
reader, seeking a home, a location, a connection. As the book concludes, as
we turn to the last page, we too keep on ''turning. closer and closer''
like the boy in this final poem—thus, in reading this book, we edge towards
one another, and away, passengers in a life, a city. Cebula''s Paris is
highly reminiscent of Frank O''Hara''s New York—a lively space to roam and
reflect, to observe and to touch. Punctuated, like days, by grocery lists
(often of the French clichés—picking up croissants or cheese and wine—) the
original experiences of the speaker stand in stark contrast to the generic
items purchased, accentuating a universal location of individuality in a
world that often appears to have absorbed all our uniqueness in errand
running, getting by or even global cosmopolitanism. The history of the
city—literary and otherwise—serves as backdrop to this contemporary
struggle to define and write the self, that self asking why it goes on
going on, into the city, society, the weft and wane of existence, as the
narrator—observing a pedestrian—asks of that other as much as of himself:
''is it divine purpose or a madness older than trees, Angel, that prods
this lone human to stride into traffic again''. A charming, delightful
read, this collection of poems allows us to stroll with Cebula, to see his
Paris while it invites us to reflect on the world through his
eyes."—Jennifer K. Dick "A man wanders through Paris. A man wanders through
Eliot. Eliot wanders through Paris. Paris wanders through the man. And, not
surprisingly, it all comes out as a love letter. Though addressed to a
missing person, these poems have no absence about them at all. Instead,
built of the fine detail of daily life, they exude a vivid presence that
coalesces into a richly nuanced sense of place, of place-as-lived. And
it''s a good life. And an utterly delightful book."—Cole Swensen "Travis
Cebula''s collection DANGEROUS THINGS TO PLEASE A GIRL contains intimate
epistolary poems in which the speaker addresses his beloved during a stay
in Paris. Reaching across and beyond this marvelous city, the collection
reflects on a tourist''s solitude. Lines from TS Eliot''s oeuvre serve as
titles for all the poems, reminding us that as readers we are part of a
meditative experience—one intensified by the senses. Sensory snapshots—the
smells, tastes, sounds, sights, and textures of Paris—create a feeling of
familiarity that echoes the devotion of the speaker to his ''Angel.''
Choose a place at ''cast iron tables / in the sun or in the shade.'' Slide
past Pigalle''s sex shops. Linger with global citizens from Armenia and
Albania under Le Tour Eifel. Lunch with jeunes filles, backs pressed
against the tombstones of Père Lachaise. Run vicariously through children
on the wet granite slabs of the Pompidou to the sound of Edith Piaf''s
voice. With Cebula, we move through Paris like Stein, Apollinaire,
Fitzgerald, and Hemingway did before us—threading our way through the city
of love and lights—''given lines / of poetry about bliss in alleys. / about
how we kiss. the swift turns /up top. the swift turns, and
drops.''"—Deborah Poe "Here one reads about lowering the blinds and eating
three peaches over a sink in the dark, on a hot summer afternoon. You will
find such a treat, if you open this book: it is both excessive and
essential, polite yet feral, a commanding, casual feast. What a tasty guide
to Paris. I admire the closely observed interactions, weird ecosystems,
shopping lists, moments of aching beauty, clashes of earthbound and aerial
intelligences, and the light yet sure step of the lines. There is also much
food for the soul."—Jonathan Skinner