True Does Nothing by JT Barbarese

J.T. Barbarese’s new book is urgent, inventive, and wide awake.  It makes a beautiful music out of the raggedest instruments, looks squarely upon defeat and is not defeated. I read it straight through and felt intensely, even defiantly, alive.—Christian WimanJ.T. Barbarese’s poems are a dose of smelling salts in a sleepy, go-along world. The freshness of his language matches perfectly—abets, I should say—the freshness and candor of his world view. Tart and sere, and also witty and generous, True Does Nothing is one of the best books I’ve read in a long time. I particularly admire his long-lined, long-limbed odes. They are, like all the poems here, exuberantly musical and bracingly less deceived. A brilliant, memorable collection!—David Yezzi   Paperback: 76 pp. Publisher: Madhat, Inc. (March 1, 2018) Language: English ISBN-13: 978-1-941196-65-6