Park Songs

A Poem/Play

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Theatre, Fiction & Literature, Poetry, American
Cover of the book Park Songs by David Budbill, Exterminating Angel Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: David Budbill ISBN: 9781935259176
Publisher: Exterminating Angel Press Publication: September 4, 2012
Imprint: Exterminating Angel Press Language: English
Author: David Budbill
ISBN: 9781935259176
Publisher: Exterminating Angel Press
Publication: September 4, 2012
Imprint: Exterminating Angel Press
Language: English

A "tale of the tribe" (Ezra Pound's phrase for his own longer work), Park Songs is set during a single day in a down-and-out Midwestern city park where people from all walks of life gather. In this small green space amidst a great gray city, the park provides a refuge for its caretaker (and resident poet), street preachers, retirees, moms, hustlers, and teenagers. Interspersed with blues songs, the community speaks through poetic monologues and conversations, while the homeless provide the introductory chorus—and all of their voices become one great epic tale of comedy and tragedy.

Full of unexpected humor, hard-won wisdom, righteous (but sometimes misplaced) anger, and sly tenderness, their stories show us how people learn to live with mistakes and make connections in an antisocial world. As the poem/play engages us in their pain and joy—and the goofy delight of being human—it makes a quietly soulful statement about acceptance and community in our lives.

David Budbill has worked as a carpenter's apprentice, short order cook, day laborer, and occasional commentator on NPR's All Thing Considered. His poems can often be heard on Garrison Keillor's Writer's Almanac and his books include the best-selling Happy Life (Copper Canyon Press) and Judevine, a collection of narrative poems that forms the basis for the play Judevine, which has been performed in twenty-two states. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Budbill now lives in the mountains of northern Vermont.

R. C. Irwin, whose absurdist and nostalgic work provides the set design for Park Songs, teaches at San Francisco City College.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

A "tale of the tribe" (Ezra Pound's phrase for his own longer work), Park Songs is set during a single day in a down-and-out Midwestern city park where people from all walks of life gather. In this small green space amidst a great gray city, the park provides a refuge for its caretaker (and resident poet), street preachers, retirees, moms, hustlers, and teenagers. Interspersed with blues songs, the community speaks through poetic monologues and conversations, while the homeless provide the introductory chorus—and all of their voices become one great epic tale of comedy and tragedy.

Full of unexpected humor, hard-won wisdom, righteous (but sometimes misplaced) anger, and sly tenderness, their stories show us how people learn to live with mistakes and make connections in an antisocial world. As the poem/play engages us in their pain and joy—and the goofy delight of being human—it makes a quietly soulful statement about acceptance and community in our lives.

David Budbill has worked as a carpenter's apprentice, short order cook, day laborer, and occasional commentator on NPR's All Thing Considered. His poems can often be heard on Garrison Keillor's Writer's Almanac and his books include the best-selling Happy Life (Copper Canyon Press) and Judevine, a collection of narrative poems that forms the basis for the play Judevine, which has been performed in twenty-two states. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Budbill now lives in the mountains of northern Vermont.

R. C. Irwin, whose absurdist and nostalgic work provides the set design for Park Songs, teaches at San Francisco City College.

More books from American

Cover of the book Savannah's Curse by David Budbill
Cover of the book Reading the Cantos (Routledge Revivals) by David Budbill
Cover of the book Deciphering Gibberish by David Budbill
Cover of the book Solstice Song by David Budbill
Cover of the book A Primer on Parallel Lives by David Budbill
Cover of the book Christmas in the Hood by David Budbill
Cover of the book Summer Heat by David Budbill
Cover of the book Performing Black Masculinity by David Budbill
Cover of the book A Taste of Earth by David Budbill
Cover of the book The Last Troubadour by David Budbill
Cover of the book Weather Central by David Budbill
Cover of the book Chekhov's Three Sisters and Woolf's Orlando by David Budbill
Cover of the book My Mother Was a Freedom Fighter by David Budbill
Cover of the book Growing Flames by David Budbill
Cover of the book The Cambridge Companion to the Literature of the American Renaissance by David Budbill
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy