Duende: Poems, 1966-Now by Quincy Troupes by Ella Nathanael Alkiewicz

Duende: Poems, 1966-Now by Quincy Troupe

by Ella Nathanael Alkiewicz

This glorious book of poetry is a compilation of Quincy Troupe’s heart and soul on the page. The reader enters the world of Troupe and gets to reflect, learn and absorb this poet’s atmosphere.

If readers are unaware of Troupe’s earlier works, they will enjoy reading portions within this publication. There are five decades’ worth of one man’s poetry encapsulated within this stupendous literary collection. They are: Embryo, Snake Back Solos: Selected Poems, 1969-1977, Skulls along the River, Weather Reports: New Poems, 1984-1990, Avalanche, Choruses, Transcircularities: New and Selected Poems, The Architecture of Language, Errançities, Ghost Voices: A Poem in Prayer, Seduction: New Poems, 2013-2018. His latest collection is called New Poems: 2019-2020, which finishes the book.

The reader is enveloped into the history, the times, and the life of an African-American male poet. For example, we read musical poetry on several jazz giants like Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington. Troupe’s piece, “Miles’s Last Tune Live, August 25th, 1991” (418) of Errançities soothes the inner trumpet of his adoration.

Troupe carries throughout his books the word “eye” for the First-Person Point of View. It grew on this writer by his seventh book, Transcircularities. We read in “Pulse & Breathe” the opening line, “eye remember bone under skin as gristle of wings” (311). Troupe gives the reader cause to pause where he/she/they must consider the poet sees the world around him. The “eye” makes the reader adjust and not be greedy. That “I” would be considered oblivious to his/her/their surroundings and selfish. And Troupe is not.

Eye believe.

Troupe’s New Poems: 2019-2020 shines the LED flashlight on the last couple of years of living in America. Poems like “Coronavirus Redial” (600), “Nancy Pelosi” (639) with “Chasing Words in Lines: For Toni Morrison (1931-2019)” (649-650) inspire the readers, the poets, and the writers.

For example, in “Chasing Words in Lines”, Troupe has the closing line for Toni Morrison, “we heard the word ‘excelsior’” (650). The power and the pain hit this writer’s eyes and stung my nose with her

loss. I remember where I was when the news hit the radio. I bawled for hours like I nearly did after reading his poem.

Troupe wrote some pieces about the 45th president of the United States, too. This writer prefers not to glorify that human. The images were divinely written and explained how it feels to be a person of color in North America, today.

The fact that Troupe dedicates some of his poems to his family, friends, and celebrities is heartwarming. He recognizes their humanness and demonstrates he is paying attention to their actions and/or losses within the community. For example, “In Memoriam: For James Baldwin (1924 – 1987)” of Weather Reports: New Poems, 1984 – 1990. The line “celebrate your skybreaking smile infectious laughter” (191) gives the reader an image of Baldwin’s grin. Troupe is kind and gentle to his beloveds.

Artwork by Cuban artist José Bedia added to the book. Bedia illustrated “The Flip Side of Time” (260) in Avalanche. The reader is drawn in to investigate and exhale from the artist’s images. The poem Troupe dedicated to Bedia “The Haitian Drum Hammerers of Juan Dolio, Santa Domingo: for José Bedia” (619620) is gentle and strong as this writer imagines Bedia must be.

The poet does not implement periods or capitalized letters within his work. However, Troupe is consistent, which permits the reader to settle in and keep reading.

Nevertheless, all these poems are worth reading. The aches, the annoyances, the praises, and the wealth of words by this award-winning veteran poet should be a required reading in English classes across the Nation. Troupe’s life lives on, and we are better to read his poems.

Pub. Date: Dec. 7, 2021 ISBN: 978-1-64421-047-5 (e-book) Page count: 656 Publisher: Seven Stories Press