For this first Fryday of National Poetry Month, I wanted to share an example of what’s going on with poetry in the right-here-and-now. Poet Ana Božičević is a friend of Third Man Books and has performed at several of our readings in Nashville and elsewhere. The following poem "Captions for a Cartoon” uses language that probably would never have been imagined by her 19th century counterparts, but some of the themes remain timeless. The comic book panels are also really great and show how poetry can work in a medium, that for whatever reason, many don’t associate with poetry. But then, how different are modern comics from William Blake’s poetry and illustrations for Songs of Innocence and Experience? Poetry is beautiful not only for its sound, rhythm, and evocativeness, but also its ability to be both timeless and always on the cutting edge, all at once. I hope you enjoy Ana's poem and my favorite month of the year.

—Chet Weise, editor Third Man Books

CAPTIONS FOR A CARTOON

(comic sans toi)

The machine dispensed

the pill into my sleeping body

and I awoke from the dream of life

I was on a broken ship

caught in the orbit of a long

dead star

how long was I asleep?

I stretched, made my way to

the one-person pod and ejected

out into space. I had to continue my mission

Earth’s last fossil, a total heart

wasn’t gonna deliver itself

to the fireplace

at the center of space and

as I bobbed along

I forgave you

for waking me

remotely but

every star I pass

makes me think of you

When I return to earth

everyone I know

will be long dead. I’ll live alone

in a ruin computerized

to serve me in your voice

No, space is not for pussies

—Ana Božičević