A Possible Epic of Care: A Collaborative Poem Between Andrei Codrescu and Vincent Katz

Andrei on his collaboration between himself and Vincent Katz: ‘Our common bonds at that curious time of the planet-engulfing Plague were various: we were friends, we were poets, we took poetry seriously enough to believe in its superpowers, but above all, we both had mothers who at ages past Ninety needed the care and attention that we could provide them. Our exchanges quickly became an ongoing epic of care. It became also a store of reminiscences, activities and ideas that paid homage to the women we cared for—communiqués and confessions that we would have liked them to appreciate’

It feels dry to recite Vincent’s bona fides; Vincent is Andrei’s esteemed colleague and very dear friend. Vincent Katz is a beautiful poet, translator, critic, editor, and curator. He has authored fifteen books of poetry, including Broadway for Paul (2020, Alfred A. Knopf), Southness (2016, Lunar Chandelier Press), Swimming Home (2015, Nightboat Books), Rapid Departures (2005, Ateliê Editorial), Understanding Objects (2000, Hard Press), Pearl (1998, powerHouse Books) and Cabal of Zealots (1988, Hanuman Books). more here

From A Possible Epic of Care: ‘I was washing an eggplant at the end of the world on February 4 2020 when I heard from Vincent. It was Mozart's 39;s birthday, a momentous event that the melophiliac
Vincent Katz would never have let pass without a celebratory panegyri

There it was in the email, beginning. It’s Mozart's39th birthday. He's only 264.years old; Mozart died young but kept on living. Vincent and I were older already than
Mozart was when he died, but if we had any chance at living as long as he did we had better get to work’

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Black Widow Press, October 17 2023

ISBN: 979-8-9880852-2-5 paperback, 144 pages