"A Year on the Avenue"
An anthology published by Two Dogs Press

Debora Lidov

The Athens Avenue Poetry Circle is a group of seven poets who met one another in cyberspace and developed an online writers' workshop. The writers are David Hunter Sutherland, Karen Dowell, Linda Leavit, Mike Timonin, Paul Kloppenborg, Tessa Gonzalez, and founding member Doug Tanoury. A Year on the Avenue is a printed collection of their work, published by TwoDogs Press.

Subjects in this collection range from heavy metal concerts to Fellini films, from airbags to buttercups, and the range of styles is just as broad. Karen Dowell brings a strong sense of narrative to even her most lyrical pieces. Her writing is extremely accessible. Tessa Gonzalez stands out for her dreamy yet astonishingly precise imagery. I admire her ability to evoke a sense of a character or an atmosphere in a sometimes very short, yet never oversaturated, poem. Paul Kloppenborg's exploration of form is exciting. The rhythms are daring and inventive. Sutherland is at his best when he marries his illusive, transcendent sensibility to something concrete, as in "True North" and "Oxalis." I also enjoyed Timonin's energy and humor (at times, downright and delightful sarcasm), Tanoury's gentle lyricism, and Leavit's understated wit.

All seven writers display a personal sincerity and earnest attention to the craft of poetry. It is this shared sense of reverence that holds the collection together and gives us a feel for the group as a functioning workshop of peers. Our own 12-Gauge Review evolved out of a Brooklyn-based workshop comprising a diverse and dynamic network of writers. A Year on the Avenue affirmed my sense that, electronic or otherwise, a good workshop will serve to sharpen the voice of the individual and will help a writer stay honest and inspired. That these writers found each other online is a spirited tale of modern-day artistic commitment and community.