The Thrift Shop
Six quatrains of Blank Verse40 total reviews
Comment from mountainwriter49
Good Morning, Tony,
Congratulations on placing third in the BV Contest! You're a master BV writer and this poem was a delight to read.
I was not aware of this store, so I am putting it on my 'shopping list' for my next trip to Manhattan. And since it is not too far from Strand Books, I'll kill two birds with one stone.
Your blank verse is impeccable and extremely well written. Your use of enjambment, particularly between the stanzas enhances the perfect meter, thus giving the poem a lyrical, free-flowing air. I particularly liked the narrative, easy paced style you used. I found myself in the shop with you, looking at neat old things and yes, perhaps some junk too.
Thanks so much for the detailed author notes. They added great value to more fully understanding some of the nuances found within your poem.
May I offer a couple of thoughts for you to consider?
I found the digital image of the bookends inserted in the middle of stanza 3 distracting. For me, it broke the flow of the read.
Should your reference to 'Leaves of Grass' in the last stanza be italicized? I note you italicized 'The Carmen Dolorosa of Seville.'
Extremely well done, my friend.
Ray
reply by the author on 09-Jul-2016
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Good Morning, Tony,
Congratulations on placing third in the BV Contest! You're a master BV writer and this poem was a delight to read.
I was not aware of this store, so I am putting it on my 'shopping list' for my next trip to Manhattan. And since it is not too far from Strand Books, I'll kill two birds with one stone.
Your blank verse is impeccable and extremely well written. Your use of enjambment, particularly between the stanzas enhances the perfect meter, thus giving the poem a lyrical, free-flowing air. I particularly liked the narrative, easy paced style you used. I found myself in the shop with you, looking at neat old things and yes, perhaps some junk too.
Thanks so much for the detailed author notes. They added great value to more fully understanding some of the nuances found within your poem.
May I offer a couple of thoughts for you to consider?
I found the digital image of the bookends inserted in the middle of stanza 3 distracting. For me, it broke the flow of the read.
Should your reference to 'Leaves of Grass' in the last stanza be italicized? I note you italicized 'The Carmen Dolorosa of Seville.'
Extremely well done, my friend.
Ray
Comment Written 28-Jun-2016
reply by the author on 09-Jul-2016
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Many thanks, Ray, for your review of The Thrift Shop eleven days ago! Herewith my belated appreciation of your kind words and six stars! I rather agree with you about the unnecessary intrusion of the duck bookends. I shall excuse myself by noting that they now stand on a window ledge in our sun-room, holding up Leaves of Grass (now duly italicized) and a few other books of poetry that I like to have at my elbow, claret in hand, as the sun casts its final shadows on Seal Rock, before sinking behind the rim of the Great Southern Ocean.
Comment from zanya
These six quatrains of blank verse transport the reader through 'the bric-a-brac'in this interesting THrift Shop -enjambment conveys the sense of movement - glancing and briefly pausing to take a closer look
reply by the author on 27-Jun-2016
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These six quatrains of blank verse transport the reader through 'the bric-a-brac'in this interesting THrift Shop -enjambment conveys the sense of movement - glancing and briefly pausing to take a closer look
Comment Written 27-Jun-2016
reply by the author on 27-Jun-2016
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Thank you so much for reading and responding to this poem. Your kind words are very much appreciated. Best wishes, Tony
Comment from catch22
Hi Tony, this is a lovely blank verse poem and it's highly descriptive and sets the melancholy mood perfectly. I loved the ending where your purchase of Whitman embodies all the emotions toward change and the future. I guess the fears revolved around change because of the juxtaposition of Whitman who was a progressive for his time against an antique thrift shop of broken and old items. Very clever and congrats on placing in the contest.
reply by the author on 26-Jun-2016
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Hi Tony, this is a lovely blank verse poem and it's highly descriptive and sets the melancholy mood perfectly. I loved the ending where your purchase of Whitman embodies all the emotions toward change and the future. I guess the fears revolved around change because of the juxtaposition of Whitman who was a progressive for his time against an antique thrift shop of broken and old items. Very clever and congrats on placing in the contest.
Comment Written 26-Jun-2016
reply by the author on 26-Jun-2016
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Very many thanks for your kind words and for the sixer. Congratulations to you, too, on coming second to the master! I found your poem to be most compelling, and on a theme well suited to the form.
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You're very welcome and I appreciate the warm comments and congrats. I was very surprised by the BV contest results because I don't consider myself very experienced with the form. It was a nice surprise.
Comment from Pearl Edwards
I find blank verse very hard to conquer so congrats on this one Tony. A very descriptive wander through the Thrift Shop you share with us in these six verses. Good luck in the contest.
reply by the author on 28-Feb-2016
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I find blank verse very hard to conquer so congrats on this one Tony. A very descriptive wander through the Thrift Shop you share with us in these six verses. Good luck in the contest.
Comment Written 28-Feb-2016
reply by the author on 28-Feb-2016
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Very many thanks for your review, Pearl. Much appreciated Best wishes, Tony
Comment from Just2Write
Another excellent etching, Tony. The Blank Verse form really lends itself well to painting an etching in words, and it was a treat to join you in that Thrift Store - where dubious bargains and hidden treasures abound.
Loved the mood you create - you have a way of making the reader pause and think about the scenes you describe. Well done. I was curious about the term 'jet-set' coming from the 1950's though. It seemed to me that commercial planes mostly had prop jobs back then. How quickly the marvel of being able to fly like a bird has come from the days at Kittyhawk.
Rose.
reply by the author on 27-Feb-2016
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Another excellent etching, Tony. The Blank Verse form really lends itself well to painting an etching in words, and it was a treat to join you in that Thrift Store - where dubious bargains and hidden treasures abound.
Loved the mood you create - you have a way of making the reader pause and think about the scenes you describe. Well done. I was curious about the term 'jet-set' coming from the 1950's though. It seemed to me that commercial planes mostly had prop jobs back then. How quickly the marvel of being able to fly like a bird has come from the days at Kittyhawk.
Rose.
Comment Written 24-Feb-2016
reply by the author on 27-Feb-2016
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Thanks so much for your review, Rose. You're right - jets weren't common in the '50s and only for the very rich. I remember the BOAC Comets coming into operation in rhe early 1950s, but when I used to travel to and from London to Singapore as a child in the mid-1950s it was still on the Lockheed Super Constellation, which had four propellers. A trip of three days with two overnight stops! A bit different from my recent non-stop flight from Hong Kong to New York in about 16 hours!
Comment from Treischel
You are a master at blank verse, as this colorful collection of Quatrains certainly proves. Of course, it is the deft use of vocabulary and poetic imagery that carries it. I expect your little shopping tale of buying a set of Walt Whitman's poetry to do quite well in the contest. Best of luck.
reply by the author on 23-Feb-2016
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You are a master at blank verse, as this colorful collection of Quatrains certainly proves. Of course, it is the deft use of vocabulary and poetic imagery that carries it. I expect your little shopping tale of buying a set of Walt Whitman's poetry to do quite well in the contest. Best of luck.
Comment Written 22-Feb-2016
reply by the author on 23-Feb-2016
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Thank you, Tom. I appreciate your comments and review. Being the weak-willed idiot that I am, I went back later and bought the bookend ducks. Best wishes, Tony.
Comment from krys123
Hello Tony;
- to me, what brings this poem into focus captures my interest was the imagery of what I believed to be an antique shop or a shop of many interests or a thrift shop to some. My wife's favorite thing to do is go to the thrift shops on weekends to catch a perfect buy.
- thank you for your author's notes they were very helpful in creating the scenery which was subjected to many fascinating and captivating interests.
- your imagery was quite marvelously expressive and very vividly descriptive with demonstrative overtones. I like the picture that sets the ambience for this poem of a typical thrift shop and the other picture which showed specifically some of the items inside which are very interesting. Especially the duck bookends which were quite unique but I think I'd pass on them.
- reading your writing was quite easy I think that's because of the cadence and timing if you read it out loud you could sense this.
- all in all I was very entertained by your writing because I have interests in thrift shops which always fascinates me.
- good luck in the contest and may the good Lord be with you always Tony.
Alex
reply by the author on 01-Mar-2016
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Hello Tony;
- to me, what brings this poem into focus captures my interest was the imagery of what I believed to be an antique shop or a shop of many interests or a thrift shop to some. My wife's favorite thing to do is go to the thrift shops on weekends to catch a perfect buy.
- thank you for your author's notes they were very helpful in creating the scenery which was subjected to many fascinating and captivating interests.
- your imagery was quite marvelously expressive and very vividly descriptive with demonstrative overtones. I like the picture that sets the ambience for this poem of a typical thrift shop and the other picture which showed specifically some of the items inside which are very interesting. Especially the duck bookends which were quite unique but I think I'd pass on them.
- reading your writing was quite easy I think that's because of the cadence and timing if you read it out loud you could sense this.
- all in all I was very entertained by your writing because I have interests in thrift shops which always fascinates me.
- good luck in the contest and may the good Lord be with you always Tony.
Alex
Comment Written 22-Feb-2016
reply by the author on 01-Mar-2016
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Glad you liked this one, Alex. I enjoyed browsing in this particular thrift shop and between my wife and I we spent more than we should have!
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Tony; they could easily be done spending more than you want at a thrift shop.
Alex
Comment from Pam (respa)
-Excellent photos.
-Poem is very good, as well.
-I appreciate the author notes.
-I guess it was quite an experience in this shop, but the NY winter can allow for time in shops, out of interest, and also as a reprieve from the cold!
-Very good imagery; I can picture many of the objects described.
-I like the description of the gowns
"that glittered with svelte shapes of former days,
the bric-a-brac of long forgotten lives."
(it reminds what they had to do to get those "svelte shapes" back in the day)
-I like this line, especially with the author notes to help,
"unsure which way to lean, a Morton's fork"
-Good conclusion.
reply by the author on 01-Mar-2016
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-Excellent photos.
-Poem is very good, as well.
-I appreciate the author notes.
-I guess it was quite an experience in this shop, but the NY winter can allow for time in shops, out of interest, and also as a reprieve from the cold!
-Very good imagery; I can picture many of the objects described.
-I like the description of the gowns
"that glittered with svelte shapes of former days,
the bric-a-brac of long forgotten lives."
(it reminds what they had to do to get those "svelte shapes" back in the day)
-I like this line, especially with the author notes to help,
"unsure which way to lean, a Morton's fork"
-Good conclusion.
Comment Written 22-Feb-2016
reply by the author on 01-Mar-2016
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Thanks, Pam. I appreciate your review for The Thrift Shop and the six stars. I'm afraid I'm a bit behind at the moment - just doing a bit of catching up in transit at Hong Kong airport! As always, your comments are detailed and to the point. Thank you! Best wishes, Tony
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You are very welcome. No problem with the delay. I am sure it was a wonderful time with your granddaughter, but I have been thinking of you when it was time to go. I liked this poem very much, and appreciate your comments about the review. If you are still in transit, have a safe trip the rest of the way.
Comment from rspoet
Once again you amaze me. I did not think it was possible to buy anything in New York City for a dollar. Imagine, the collected works of Walt Whitman, over four hundred poem, for one dollar; not even a penny a poem. Such is the fate of one of the great poets.
Then, of course, there is your interesting and masterful poem.
"a set of crystal goblets missing one -
the shattered truth of finite usefulness."
There's a line worth a dollar all by itself!
Poetic license aside, the shop sounds fascinating. I love the Dickens novel, The Old Curiosity Shop. What a wonderful name for a thrift shop; a poem in a name.
A shop of memories, the lives and loves that preceded us, now on sale in a small thrift shop for a single dollar. Then, one who traveled half-way round the world walks in and finds a treasure.
Beautiful blank verse in iambic pentameter, each stanza a sentence with the easy flow of narrative.
I'd pay two dollars for the collected works
Well done!
PS. The most copious notes in the history of fanstory.
reply by the author on 01-Mar-2016
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Once again you amaze me. I did not think it was possible to buy anything in New York City for a dollar. Imagine, the collected works of Walt Whitman, over four hundred poem, for one dollar; not even a penny a poem. Such is the fate of one of the great poets.
Then, of course, there is your interesting and masterful poem.
"a set of crystal goblets missing one -
the shattered truth of finite usefulness."
There's a line worth a dollar all by itself!
Poetic license aside, the shop sounds fascinating. I love the Dickens novel, The Old Curiosity Shop. What a wonderful name for a thrift shop; a poem in a name.
A shop of memories, the lives and loves that preceded us, now on sale in a small thrift shop for a single dollar. Then, one who traveled half-way round the world walks in and finds a treasure.
Beautiful blank verse in iambic pentameter, each stanza a sentence with the easy flow of narrative.
I'd pay two dollars for the collected works
Well done!
PS. The most copious notes in the history of fanstory.
Comment Written 22-Feb-2016
reply by the author on 01-Mar-2016
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Thanks, RS. I appreciate your review for The Thrift Shop and the six stars. I'm afraid I'm a bit behind at the moment - just doing a bit of catching up in transit at Hong Kong airport! As always, your comments are detailed and to the point. Thank you! Leaves of Grass was quite a find at $1, but I spoiled the economy of it by buying the ducks for $40. Best wishes, Tony
Comment from Joy Graham
Sounds like a fun thrift shop to check out :) Filled with treasures. They say one man's junk is another man's treasure. Maybe I should check out more thrift shops and antique shops just to see what treasures might catch my eye.
reply by the author on 01-Mar-2016
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Sounds like a fun thrift shop to check out :) Filled with treasures. They say one man's junk is another man's treasure. Maybe I should check out more thrift shops and antique shops just to see what treasures might catch my eye.
Comment Written 21-Feb-2016
reply by the author on 01-Mar-2016
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Thanks, Joy. I appreciate your review for The Thrift Shop. I'm afraid I'm a bit behind at the moment - just doing a bit of catching up in transit at Hong Kong airport! As always, I enjoyed your comments. Thank you! Best wishes, Tony