Songs of a Reluctant Poet

Winner of the St. Louis Wednesday's Club 2002 Annual Poetry contest for Poem of a Bare Princess, Demian Farnworth weaves together a collection of poems that possess the tragedy, warmth and lyricism of his prize-winning work. Songs of a Reluctant Poet delves into the psyches of: Young, wistful wrestlers who dream of the fantastic, unredeemable past during weary, physical matches. Adolescent suicides amusing themselves with swimming, swans, songs and vodka. A mathematician attempting to preserve himself by filling his apartment with flowers; who imagines he's the Third Horseman of the Apocalypse; who fears the turning of the leaves to autumn is an assault by a fire-breathing serpent. The unusual--sometimes comical--thoughts and acts of these self-absorbed characters manage to undermine their tragic reality. For all the glee, Demian Farnworth's lines are severe and wild: these thoughts and acts--imposed by the poet on his people--betray a judgment of an unrelenting and unreconciled sort.