Tag Archives: Ben Mirov

“Sometimes People Suffer For No Reason”: John Reed

John Reed’s Tales of Woe offers a parade of captivating, affronting stories that challenge and delight—er, disturb—the reader. BOMBlog’s Ben Mirov wades through the tears.

Ben Mirov

Aaron Mette, INVOCATION TO SGT BLAZEKIRK OF THE NORTHERN SKY, carving on blackened foamcore. 20 x 30 inches. - 2009
Who was chasing me through the brush? He’s staring at neon graffiti and doesn’t look away. He looks like a rich kid on acid. He turns into a duffle bag. The man I have sex with is me. I don’t dream about you. I find your feelings’ cloud. In episode 10 of Phoned In, BOMB Magazine’s poetry reading by phone podcast, Ben Mirov reads from his book Ghost Machine. Click through for a Q&A where he and Luke Degnan discuss boredom, depression, Lego poetry, and Haruki Murakami’s novel The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle.

“Come Into My Amazing Yard”: Brandon Downing

Somewhere between art book and poetry opus, Brandon Downing’s Lake Antiquity fills a void that may well represent the future-space of new writing. BOMBlog’s Ben Mirov picks his brain.

Small Press Spotlight: Birds, LLC



Birds, LLC is unique in the landscape of small poetry presses. Run by a group of friends who reside in multiple cities, the underlying aim of the press seems to be to publish within a small circumference of poets with close ties to its editors. Ben Mirov puts this small press under the spotlight.

Small Press Spotlight: Fence Books

Small Press Spotlight is a new monthly column at BOMBlog that explores the incredibly varied world of small literary presses, one at a time. First up: poetry powder keg FENCE Books. Check out our rundown of their recent releases.

Jillian Weise: Cyborg Dreams


Jillian Weise was already the author of two collections of poetry when she began writing The Colony, a novel that is by turns disturbing, beautiful and hilarious.

New Lives: An Interview with Justin Taylor

Justin Taylor.
Justin Taylor’s collection Everything Here is the Best Thing Ever is jagged-edged, darklywrought debut made of broken beer bottles and sidereal light. Stories in the collection range from densely packed flash narratives to longer pieces that draw out their impact in a lengthier, but no less potent, manner. Perhaps the most articulate aspect of the collection is its unforgiving portrayal of its characters. The young men and women in Taylor’s stories gain their vividness and our sympathy via the same qualities that make them distasteful outsiders.

Mark Bibbins: “We the Reader”

Mark Bibbins. Photo by Star Black.
Although The Dance of No Hard Feelings is Mark Bibbins’ second book of poetry, nothing about this recently released collection feels sophomoric. Its bulk (just under 100 pages), its effortless political and didactic flourishes, its lapidary formal qualities and charismatic cadences give an impression of rare expertise.