Robert Mueller reports On Roving the Chapbook Festival in The Gathering of Tribes:
Talk of the chapbook brings to mind the arch flattery by which the ancient poets defend what they like. Suppose they choose to write in shorter forms. They might try the eclogue, or some other suitable form. Whatever their liking, to take to these hills they will accept attention given, but they must duck onerous demands on their resources: “Though you are so wonderful, my patron, please do not ask me to write an epic poem. My wings, poor things, cannot encompass the weight, and besides, smaller poems can be good, too, good to please and good for the soul.”
Advertisement
