Critical Commentary
The Art of the Invisible
(American Book Review)
invisible sister
Jeffrey Ethan Lee
Many Mountains Moving Press
70 pages; paper, $11.95
...the title poem [is] a tour de force of persona and plot as a brother watches his sister careen out of control. “invisible sister” does indeed set up a dialogue of great tension—its sprawling formal voices and the dual (and dueling) columns challenge the notion of Asians as an “invisible” minority. Iris, the invisible sister, serves not only as witness to her own experience but becomes a sort of every-girl when she is coaxed into a barn by her white friend....
The book is full of dualities: life/death, dream life/waking life, female/male, Asian/non-Asian. Poem parts... are repeated and recast. A poem fragment appears as one voice and is immediately consumed and duplicated into a poem fragment with two voices. invisible sister itself suggests multiple readings and serves not only as a book of poetry but as a blueprint, sheet music, a play waiting to be built or performed. In this way, Jeffrey Ethan Lee has done a great service to performance poetry. His careful line breaks, as well as his deft use of white space and text, suggest a deliberate and thoughtful architecture that belies a common complaint that so much of performance poetry does not hold up on the page.
The voice of the brother in this poem is in service to the sister’s—Iris is the one with the story to tell; she is the one with the drama. And yet the quiet dignity of the male voice holds his own even when:
I was so lost in her
my I.D. cards could have been
waterfalling around me....
[T]here is much to be admired in all of Jeffrey Ethan Lee’s poetic personas and voices....
(Denise Duhamel)
Review of The Sylph by Francis Alix.
A chapbook is a great way to experience a sampling of a poet’s work. Mr. Lee compiled some of his earlier work inspired by Taoist meditation postures and Buddhist wisdom literature for this chapbook, his second poetry chapbook. His compilation was successful for it won him the 2002 Chapbook Competition of The Sow’s Ear Poetry Review and was published as an issue of that review. He is a fine example of the diverse works the small press publishes and large press rarely publishes.
The poems are rooted in transpersonal states and romantic love. He uses nature imagery frequently, as one would expect from his inspiration. The poet explains ordinary things— breathing, walking, a pumping heart—with grace and visual acuity. A few images, such as “liquid joy” and “green fire” eluded me, but his images are solid and sometimes startling as in “Breath (an epitaph)”—
Storm-sunken ships yield
no trophies and no wisdom
to oceans—like breaths also
scattered I must come and go—
Some poems are written in a “two-voiced lyric form” where one poem is placed opposite another on the same page and they speak to each other. This creates an unusual harmony and contrast. It brings a welcome change from the average one-page-per-poem standard.
I look forward to his first full-length book, whenever that may be. And, you should, too. At six dollars, this chapbook is a gift not only for its craft, but its inspiration.
Review of Identity Papers CD by Dick Metcalf, archived at www.drimala.com
Our friends at Drimala Records always come up with exciting & challenging recordings. Jeffrey's CD is no exception to that expectation! Lee is a poet of strong substance... this particular outing serves to chronicle his impressions of experiences after he was assaulted in New York City. He is joined (vocally) by Lori-Nan Engler & (percussively) by internationally renowned percussionist Toshi Makihara. As you might imagine, this isn't "party music"... you must listen to the sensitive & gripping interaction between the vocals & Makihara's cymbals/drums. The stories Jeffrey tells are not "60 Minutes" style... it is recommended that you block out an hour (or so) to sit down with headphones when you listen to this; if you do it that way, you'll find yourself immersed in Lee's experience. I enjoyed this CD immensely - enough so to give it a MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for any listener who can/will take the time to absorb it. A great music/poetry experience!
