By Harry Whitewolf
Publisher: Self-Published
Pub. Date: September 18, 2016
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
I appreciate poetry but I prefer poetry with a beat and a
message. By""Beat" I mean the Beat Generation with their disdain for an
establishment that praised surface over substance and encouraged
conformity over fighting for justice and inequality. And that it why I
am so stoked by this collection of confrontational rhyme by Harry
Whitewolf. There is no question hat Harry (Do you mind if I call you
Harry. I feel a kindred spirit present) is greatly influenced by the
Beats but his poetry is contemporary and infused with another type of
beat and rhyme that would receive a enthusiastic nod from Tupac and
Biggie. If I was to try to describe his poetry in one sentence I would
say Lawrence Ferlinghetti by way of Che Guevara and Mos Def. Some might
call his poetry political but I would call it socially sensible. There
is a lot of anger in his words yet the overriding message is peace and
equality.
There is humor too. That is what makes the anger
palatable and that is one of the reason it becomes art rather than rant.
Harry's poetry is fun to read but it really feels like it need to be
heard, as suggested by the cover drawing. When all is read and done,
this is performance poetry meant for a coffee house or a protest
demonstration. But still, the message and exuberance comes thorough in
the print. We need more people like Harry Whitewolf who can, excuse me
for the cliche, "tell it like it is."
If you do want to hear Harry Whitewolf reading his poetry, here is a video of one of the best poems in the book....
https://www.goodreads.com/videos/1093...
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