One of my goals in 2020 is to read more. See other books I've read or listened to here.
I really enjoy Gord Downie’s solo music and his band The Tragically Hip. Coke Machine Glow is the companion poetry book to his album of the same name.
To accompany his solo album, Gord Downie collected this book of poetry incorporating the lyrics from the album.
An atmospheric and graphic look at life on the road, this books has mostly short poems. I’m not a huge poetry person, but I guess if I had to choose, I prefer short poems. Three to five lines seems to be my favorite. Perhaps my favorite style of poetry are haikus. I love poems that can make you see or feel something in only a few lines. Having had a little taste of life of the road living with a band in my youth I liked that these poems reminded me of that time. That was also the time that I got in to Downie’s music so the whole collection was very nostalgic for me. Overall, I didn’t love this book tho and still don’t love poetry collections. I got thru this book in a day, but the only entries that stuck with me were the lyrics I already knew. I liked that Coke Machine Glow included the lyrics form the album bc it helped me to think of all the poems as songs, which made this book easier for me to digest. I would recommend this book if you are a fan of Downie’s music or the tragically hip, to those who love poetry or who want a glimpse of life on the road in prose, and people who have an affinity for Canadians.
Have you every listened to Gordon Downie or the Tragically Hip?