{"product_id":"2940013861664","title":"Collateral Damage Report (Selected Treats)","description":"The Collateral Damage Report (Special Treats) is a collection of poems by award-winning poet and author Michael Pollick. Individual pieces have been published in such literary magazines as The Iconoclast, Midwest Poetry Review, MOSAIC, Miller's Pond, and the political poetry anthology Will Work For Peace. Animated versions of these poems can also be viewed at the author's LordoftheGeeks YouTube channel. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis collection addresses subject matter from war to love, observation to remembrance.  Some are actually based on true events in the author's life, while others have a more universal theme. A few even seem closer to microshort fiction than poetry. This collection should appeal to those readers who may have already sworn off poetry as inaccessible or too esoteric. Many readers comment on the accessibility and everyman appeal of these pieces, and the author hopes that future readers come away with similar opinions.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMAKEBELIEVE BALLROOM\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eand when all that remains of \u003cbr\u003eour dimestore dances are scuffs \u003cbr\u003eon aching linoleum, \u003cbr\u003eI shall consider you carefully, \u003cbr\u003eand know that we were gods once. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ethis was how the rockefellers \u003cbr\u003eplayed it, all hot and close \u003cbr\u003eenough to the bones; \u003cbr\u003ewe blew eight to the bar, \u003cbr\u003eeight to the bar, \u003cbr\u003eon blistered rugs and buckling \u003cbr\u003estoreroom floors. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eand you were all fierce reds \u003cbr\u003eand polished whites, \u003cbr\u003eclapping and surging with \u003cbr\u003ethe pulses of Dorsey, \u003cbr\u003ewhirling and crackling with \u003cbr\u003ethe promises of Miller, \u003cbr\u003eturning and wailing with \u003cbr\u003ethe heat of the vacuums. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eToday, I played the Dorsey \u003cbr\u003eonce more, \u003cbr\u003eand as the needle danced \u003cbr\u003eback and forth \u003cbr\u003eon only a paper moon \u003cbr\u003eonly a paper moon \u003cbr\u003eonly a paper moon, \u003cbr\u003eI heard the creaking \u003cbr\u003eof the storeroom \u003cbr\u003eboards, and for one \u003cbr\u003edying moment \u003cbr\u003eyou and I were spooning, \u003cbr\u003ealone and invincible, \u003cbr\u003ein the dust of \u003cbr\u003eour makebelieve ballroom. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCLEFT FOR ME\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFour small whispers can now leave rehearsal,\u003cbr\u003ethe last cigarette has been ground to ashes.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt was once important for us to kill some Negroes,\u003cbr\u003eno matter how many times they claimed to fear God—\u003cbr\u003eno matter how pretty their dime store dresses were—\u003cbr\u003eno matter how late they were for choir practice.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the whole of Birmingham, 1963,\u003cbr\u003efreedom smelled a lot like gunpowder residue\u003cbr\u003eon the hands of Bobby Frank Cherry.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFour shadows from another mangled storm shelter\u003cbr\u003ecan now share Cokes on hot summer revivals\u003cbr\u003eand find Sister Henrietta's eyeglasses for her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile I draw this\u003cbr\u003efleeting breath,\u003cbr\u003eWhen my eyes\u003cbr\u003eshall close in\u003cbr\u003edeath,\u003cbr\u003eI shall fly\u003cbr\u003eto worlds unknown,\u003cbr\u003eAnd behold thee\u003cbr\u003eon thy throne.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNow is the day four little singers\u003cbr\u003efound their way back\u003cbr\u003eto the 16th Street Baptist church,\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eafter getting lost in another man's smoke.","brand":"Michael Pollick","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47069013934320,"sku":"2940013861664","price":0.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940013861664_p0.jpg?v=1763596343","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940013861664","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}