Ekphrasis, a genre of poetry inspired by other works of art of all descriptions, is the theme of this issue. And unless you have a particular interest in this genre, I wouldn’t recommend this issue too enthusiastically. Some of the poems focus on specific paintings or music, others focus on other artists, and still others explore the act of creation itself. Few of the poems made me want to read them again. More than a few fell flat, especially those with predictable rhyming schemes. In this issue, Hammered Out serves as a forum for over 80 different authors diverse in skill, voice, and imagination. Due to this mixture and quantity of poems, the overall result is not very satisfying. While I appreciate the idea of publishing as much of the submitted material as possible, I have to admit I think I would’ve enjoyed it more if they had narrowed down their selection of poems. Some of the poems were not bad and I might have appreciated them more if I didn’t have to sift through the others to find them. (Nancy Duncan)
Litzine, issue 6, $5, Peter Street Publishing, Hamilton, ON, [email protected]