Poetry Slam Bam Thank You Ma Am

Within this book I will attempt to explore 46 traditional forms of poetry. My goal is not only to entertain, but also to educate the masses. I will be explaining each type of poem before I write my own poetry to follow. I hope you all enjoy.

"I was smitten, bitten by a love bug or something I didn't even care that I'd just been hit. I was in deep smit." Laura Crapper, a seventeen-year-old combat-boot-wearing poet with spiked red hair, renames herself Sister Slam and hits the road with her best friend, Twig. On the way into the slam poetry world of New York City, they hit a pig, get pulled over by the cops, fight with a poetry contest's judge, lose the contest, get into two more fender benders, fight with each other, and finally land on the front page of a newspaper in New York City for their amazing impromptu performance at the famous Tavern on the Green. The girls and their fresh style of poetry take the city by storm, but when Laura's father back in Pennsylvannia has a heart attack she must face her fears about home and the still-raw loss of her mother. An inspiring romp of a coming-of-age story, written entirely in Laura's in-your-face slam poetry style, that proves you don't have to give up your home in order to live your dream.

As the United States' prison population has exploded over the past 30 years, a rich, provocative and ever-increasing body of literature has emerged, written either by prisoners or by those who have come in close contact with them. Unlike earlier prison writings, contemporary literature moves in directions that are neither uniformly ideological nor uniformly political. It has become increasingly personal, and the obsessive subject is the way identity is shaped, compromised, altered, or obliterated by incarceration. The 14 essays in this work examine the last 30 years of prison literature from a wide variety of perspectives. The first four essays examine race and ethnicity, the social categories most evident in U.S. prisons. The three essays in the next section explore gender, a prominent subject of prison literature highlighted by the absolute separation of male and female inmates. Section three provides three essays focused on the part ideology plays in prison writings. The four essays in section four consider how aesthetics and language are used, seeking to define the qualities of the literature and to determine some of the reasons it exists.

Ben Diaz, (who writes under the nom de plume of Natureboy) and his family, live in a small community called Goodrich in the state of Michigan. Writing has been an ongoing hobby since he was an adolescent. He enjoys the power of words and the feelings that they can evoke. Ben (or Natureboy as he likes to say) writes poetry and the romance genre is what he enjoys writing about the most. He attributes much of his poetry to life experiences and a day dreaming reverie which often draws him into love poems. Ben has taken several classes in Creative Writing at local community colleges. It is at that time he started really honing his poetic writing skills. Free Verse is very evident in his style of writing. Over the years, he has rebuffed many humorous remarks about how he signed his poetry as Natureboy/Ben Diaz. Natureboy has become his accepted signature on his poetry, and he signs it that way, with a humble acceptance of how he sees himself. He enjoys handcycling and finding ways to exercise in his wheelchair which is an ongoing challenge to him.

Slang, writes Michael Adams, is poetry on the down low, and sometimes lowdown poetry on the down low, but rarely, if ever, merely lowdown. It is the poetry of everyday speech, the people's poetry, and it deserves attention as language playing on the cusp of art. In Slang: The People's Poetry, Adams covers this perennially interesting subject in a serious but highly engaging way, illuminating the fundamental question "What is Slang" and defending slang--and all forms of nonstandard English--as integral parts of the American language. Why is an expression like "bed head" lost in a lexical limbo, found neither in slang nor standard dictionaries? Why are snow-boarding terms such as "fakie," "goofy foot," "ollie" and "nollie" not considered slang? As he addresses these and other lexical curiosities, Adams reveals that slang is used in part to define groups, distinguishing those who are "down with it" from those who are "out of it." Slang is also a rebellion against the mainstream. It often irritates those who color within the lines--indeed, slang is meant to irritate, sometimes even to shock. But slang is also inventive language, both fun to make and fun to use. Rather than complain about slang as "bad" language, Adams urges us to celebrate slang's playful resistance to the commonplace and to see it as the expression of an innate human capacity, not only for language, but for poetry.

Master storyteller Stephen King presents the classic, terrifying #1 New York Times bestseller about a terrifying otherworldly discovery and the effects it has a on a small town. “Late last night and the night before, Tommyknockers, Tommyknockers, knocking at the door…” On a beautiful June day, while walking deep in the woods on her property in Haven, Maine, Bobbi Anderson quite literally stumbles over her own destiny and that of the entire town. For the dull gray metal protrusion she discovers in the ground is part of a mysterious and massive metal object, one that may have been buried there for millennia. Bobbi can’t help but become obsessed and try to dig it out…the consequences of which will affect and transmute every citizen of Haven, young and old. It means unleashing extraordinary powers beyond those of mere mortals—and certain death for any and all outsiders. An alien hell has now invaded this small New England town…an aggressive and violent malignancy devoid of any mercy or sanity…

Discover the love, laughter, and work-inspired chaos in the Love Where You Work boxed set, featuring three feel-good sapphic rom-coms. Love Where You Work introduces Clare Kolikov, a dedicated HR manager navigating an unconventional matchmaking role at a quirky San Francisco startup, W;nkdIn. Seemingly doomed encounters with pole dancing and plant-healing challenge her working life, while her growing attraction for fellow colleague Julia Dawes—the dazzling fashionista with roller-blade confidence—threatens her meticulous career plans. Workplace regulations and a secret love affair culminate into a challenging decision—choosing between her dream job or her dream girl. Pivot is a humorous queer rom-com starring Paula Suarez, a hopeful designer, and her chance meeting with audacious journalist Nita Funmaker, amidst cosplay catastrophes and unraveling divorce amendments. A series of amusing scenarios, including drag wrestling and secret ice-skating passions, act as a melting pot for their burgeoning affections. Their joint escapades lead to confronting inner turmoil and perhaps finding an unexpected love. The third novel, Courtship, takes us on a cruise with Reaux Briggs, a recently ousted drummer, who unexpectedly crosses paths with her former love Catherine “Fitz” Fitzgerald, a dedicated divorce lawyer. Thrust together due to a mutual friend's wedding, they must reconcile their past as they navigate through literal and emotional storms on their quest for love. Heartwarming, steamy, and always humorous—the Love Where You Work boxed set is a heartfelt exploration of work, friendship, and the surprising places one may find love. For fans of Casey McQuiston and Karelia Stetz-Waters, this trio of novels promises to be both an emotional rollercoaster and a joy to read.

The Poetry of Emmett Lee Dickinson, Emily Dickinson's Third Cousin, Twice Removed (at her request) "Cummings Around Again" Parodies of some of Cummings' Most Well-Known Poems "Frost in Translation" Classic Frost Poems Updated for the 21st Century