Private Worlds: A Revised Atlas, by Scott Green
Review by Randy Streu

The Abbot Press

eBook is the Second Edition of Private Worlds, a collection of short poetry and haiku. There are books out there that tackle fantasy, science fiction or horror themes, but this seems an altogether different animal. Here are not the imagined realms of the author, or ruminations on figment characters. Instead, Green's subjects are published works themselves. He presents in this book brief commentaries on authors and their creations, written as haiku and short poetry rather than the dry prose of a college student (or professor) offering up critique.

It's an interesting tack, and something of a risk for the writer. People who have read the works (or the authors) to which the poet refers from poem to poem will give a knowing smile to seeing, perhaps, their own thoughts on the varied works laid out in such a way. On the downside, in order to know what the poet is talking about, you have to know what he's talking about.

For example, somebody familiar with the works of Isaac Asimov will understand and appreciate the lines, "Life is laughter, even metal can sing out laughter" (From "Asimov's World").

But in "Norton's World, I", for example, you really have to know about the particular work to understand the poets' choices in referring to the "laconic tabby with opal eyes." This is not to say the works cannot be enjoyed without the knowledge. Indeed, the tight prose of each poem actually serves as a sort of summary of the work or works about which the poet is writing. But the reader gains another dimension if he or she already has understanding of the pieces in question.

Like most concept collections, Private Worlds appears to be an experiment. In this case, the attempt was to do a collection based on known works and artists, but rather than take the standard approach of writing from a character perspective or writing within the universe, Green invites the reader to step back outside the original prose, to examine it briefly with a critical eye, and meld that renewed understanding back into your rereadings of the material. A curious undertaking to be sure, but one well worth the look.

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