Published in 1968, Spring In This World of Poor Mutts contains the poems which remind me most of my father. To me, his writings in this particular book reflect the different aspects of his personality which I remember most. He was a your typical man of the time, carrying out a professional role from 9-5 during the weekday. He was a fish swimming freely in the N.J. rivers on the weekend, his mind wondering below the surface of the Ramapo River, as he explained hydrology and bridge building concepts to me while we fished for trout. He was also a summer lighthouse tourist in the warm sun, gazing up at the Montauk Lighthouse in between writing in his black book which he always kept in the back pocket of his Wrangler jeans, even while on vacation. Perhaps these are simply the ways I remember him most.
Jim Ceravolo
Spring In This World of Poor Mutts by Joseph Ceravolo is the first book to win the Frank O'Hara Award for Poetry. The award is named for the poet Frank O'Hara, who was killed in an automobile accident in 1966. The award is specifically intended to encourage the writing of good new experimental poetry and to aid in it's publication. The award, which consists of a prize of a thousand dollars and publication by the Columbia House Press, is to be given annually to a poet who has not yet had a book of his poems published by a commercial or university press.*
*Extracted from the back cover of Spring In This World of Poor Mutts
Spring In This World of Poor Mutts front cover.
Sample poems from Spring In This World of Poor Mutts.
Spring In This World of Poor Mutts back cover.
Entire contents Copyright © 1996-2007 by the Estate of Joseph Ceravolo. All rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of the Estate of Joseph Ceravolo is prohibited.
