Dale Smith (2)

Whether poetry or prose, Smith is a raconteur. True to his intent, the narrative in "The Flood & the Garden" is "laid out on values dear to Kerouac: 'order, tenderness and piety.'" The book is a look "at the commerce-littered land...no time to consider what is. Out in the sour Chevy heartland..." It's also a window into Smith's beliefs, travels, home life, friends, the parties he attends, the bars he goes to, the chemicals he imbibes. It's a naked honesty that proclaims, "Here I am."

Imagine Cabeza de Vaca commissioning a poet to document the excursion to the New World and you'll understand the concept behind American Rambler. Smith takes us on a poetic journey through history and time, "between abundance and poverty, the known and the unknown, memory and imagination" as "poetry gathers the historical fragments" that documented history has left behind.