Critics of Mystery Marvel, Collected Poems
by Youssef Alaoui
with an Introduction by Laila Halaby
APR. 2018 | ISBN: 978-1-940939-66-7 (Print)
JUN. 2018 | ISBN: 978-1-940939-80-3 (eBook)
BOOK INFO | AVAILABLE @ AMAZON
I first heard Youssef Alaoui recite poetry from a DVD that filmmaker Vagabond produced and played for me, and I found his poetry well-written and very interesting. When I got to know Youssef better, I found him equally interesting, a Latino Moroccan poet who speaks three languages living in California. While he is well-known and well-respected in his local community, I never heard of him, but I wanted to know more about him and his work.
I found his poetry dark, sensual, spiritual and magical. Since this was going to be Youssef’s first full-length book, we both agreed that the final collection had to be refined, on point, and able to appeal to a wider audience. As always, poetry editor Sean Dillon’s notes spawned action, and some of the original poetry was cut so that the feel and texture of the poetry was consistent throughout, with existing poetry reorganized throughout the book as well.
Poetry is like sculpting, shaping words that impact the meaning of the poem. It’s a quality often used to describe concrete/shape poetry, but I think it’s applicable to all poetry. Youssef is good at it. He studies words, their meaning and placement. Even after the major rework, there were multiple refinements along the way before finalizing the manuscript into CRITICS OF MYSTERY MARVEL.
It is worth noting that the cover was designed by Youssef, including that funky font which is featured on the cover and displayed prominently throughout the book, living up to a “post-beat” sensibility that Youssef uses to describe himself and his poetry. Youssef creates handmade books, and designs books for other writers, so the layout and design of the book was really essential to the overall appearance and feel to the book. Perhaps the biggest coup d’é·tat in this project was that the Introduction was written by Laila Halaby.
I was surprised that the Arab literary community was not familiar with Youssef’s work. Why is it a big deal? Because right now, it’s one of the most powerfully organized communities in the literary world that’s doing great things, and I’d like to see Youssef become a part of it, which is why I sought out an established Arab American author to write the introduction.
Papo has often opined, on more than one occasion, “Why can’t I just be a poet who happens to be Puerto Rican instead of a Puerto Rican poet?” It’s a question that plenty of poets of color have asked over the years. I mention this because while I think poetry, good poetry, should be able to speak on its own regardless of the identity of the poet, I am certainly not averse to poets of color being associated with ethnic-specific poetry communities. Why? Because until mainstream publishers and small presses truly open their doors to multicultural writers, these communities (when they can) provide tremendous support to poets and writers, especially those who are up and coming, with the hope that their work can make their way into mainstream America’s evolving literary canon.
Youssef’s poetry is embedded in both regional and ethnic sensibilities that fits comfortably in the mainstream world. His work, written in three languages (primarily English, as well as a few French and Spanish translations) proves that in the end, poets are becoming internationalists who cross boundaries on their own terms. The CRITICS OF MYSTERY MARVEL is one of those bodies of work that achieve this and will not disappoint.
