‘Blue Mesa’ full of variety

The 13th annual “Blue Mesa Review” may not have a theme this year, but it still has an abundance of writing talent to be proud of.

The “Blue Mesa Review,” the UNM English Department’s literary magazine that showcases writers from around the Southwest and beyond, features several unique stories and poems from the UNM and Albuquerque community.

Lawrence Goeckel, a local poet and writer, stood out as the foremost talented poet within the entire magazine. His poems “Frenchette,” “A Wave Falling On the Beach” and “Message From the Photo-Mat” scream gritty beauty. “Frenchette” combined sensual visuals with stunning metaphors such as “the alleyway in front of her apartment/had a memory —/ smelling of Spanish cigarettes, /a memory of the cobbled sound/of gloved hands applauding/gypsies with a balancing goat.” He creates an ethereal, yet harsh, reality and makes the ugly beautiful within his images and rivals poets such as Carl Sandberg and Sapphire.

UNM English staff member Emily Spiegelman wrote an honest piece called “A Theory of Marriage,” about a high school senior trying to live with an alcoholic father and a mother who can’t leave him because she’s afraid of losing her family. Spiegelman’s fresh and upfront style brought her characters to life, giving the story a depth and maturity rare for the subject matter.

Nick Hundley’s poem “Commuting” is short, but has a way of using simple images, such as red chimneys and fire hydrants, to convey a more complex sadness of everyday life. Hundley, a UNM student, haunts the readers with images of poverty-stricken children burning furniture for firewood and displaced hospital patients wandering through ordinary streets to candy stores.

The only nonfiction creative writing in the magazine was a piece by Martin Scott, who teaches at the University of Houston. A talented writer, Scott wrote about the suicides of his teachers and friends, intermixed with several well-known people in “On Suicides and Murders.” He also addressed his own suicide attempts as a teenager, talking about the true reasons behind taking your own life. His style switches from concrete to contemplative, giving his story more credibility and more interesting aspects.

Another wonderful poet was Todd Moore, whose poignant poem “harry took” was about a man who was shot. The poem’s line breaks were sudden and small, and the overall poem got its power from the simple images and plain language, such as “a 45 slug” instead of something fancier. The abruptness of the poem was exquisite. Moore has written more than 80 books since 1976 and lives in Albuquerque.

The entire magazine outdoes itself with the various, widespread and distinctive writers. The stories and poems had no echoes of similarity between themselves, and the diverseness only strengthened and already strong magazine. Other contributors were poet E.G. Burrows, University of Utah student Jeffrey Chapman, Western Michigan University teacher Jaimy Gordon and several other gifted writers throughout the United States.

Those who want to purchase a copy of “Blue Mesa Review” can pick one up at the UNM bookstore for $10.