Book Review: Tragedy, Ecstasy, Doom, and so on

Sagar Kulkarni

Tragedy, Ecstasy, Doom, and so on by Kip Knott, Kelsay Books, 2020, $18.50 paperback

Reviewed by C. Cimmone

They tell you in school to write with careful descriptions in order to “project the reader to another place.” This task is easily achieved when writing long prose, but when writing short poetry, it can be a challenge. Fortunately, Kip Knott did not see this as a challenge when producing his poetry collection Tragedy, Ecstasy, Doom, and so on.

Knott’s varying subject matter within these pale pages pulls you into his hands — writing precisely and wholeheartedly about self-doubt, love, death and (as he calls it) “so on.” The poetry is tactile. The poetry is warm and suggesting you move through this world with an open mind.

This ever-painful self-awareness Knott exposes is perfect, not only for entertainment purposes, but to serve as a reminder that we should all be growing, whether enduring death, loss of love, or just the daily grind of life and being human.

The poet is flawed. He is sensitive. He is searching for answers. He is just like the rest of us, except he has the unique ability to spill these challenges, experiences, and bits of advice through words woven with golden phrases. Here are just a few pieces picked from several poems, which will stick with me for a good while:

“A starling builds a nest in my mouth.” (Creation Myth)

“It is the day too far off / to be considered real.” (One Day)

“Heaven is a gaudy mansion.” (Van Gogh’s Cloud)

“the clock marking the empty minutes,” (Sequential)

“The war has plucked them clean / until they are less than birds / and more like exclamation points” (IV. Hierarchical Birds, 1944)

Additionally, Knott’s “VIII. White Cloud Over Purple, 1957" is lyrical and perfect. I read this one a few times over as if replaying a song on an old record player. And being a sucker for titles, I enjoyed his well-crafted title: “The Distributive Property of Multiplication over Addition.”

We have to address the most painful of the poems: “One Day” and “Breaking Home Ties.” Remember when I mentioned the varying subject matter earlier? Knott even has a poem titled “Bigfoot Crossing” and another poem referencing the almighty Johnny Cash.

I hate reading poetry collections that go on and on about the same old muse or a long, boring walk by the river. Have no fear after you purchase Kip Knott’s collection: he has poems arranged to keep your mind attached.