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Matthew Rohrer is the author of Army of Giants (Wave Books, 2024), The Sky Contains the Plans (Wave Books, 2020), The Others (Wave Books, 2017), which was the winner of the 2017 Believer Book Award, Surrounded by Friends (Wave Books, 2015), Destroyer and Preserver (Wave Books, 2011), A Plate of Chicken (Ugly Duckling Presse, 2009), Rise Up (Wave Books, 2007) and A Green Light (Verse Press, 2004), which was shortlisted for the 2005 Griffin Poetry Prize. He is also the author of Satellite (Verse Press, 2001), and co-author, with Joshua Beckman, of Nice Hat. Thanks. (Verse Press, 2002), and the audio CD Adventures While Preaching the Gospel of Beauty. He has appeared on NPR’s All Things Considered and The Next Big Thing. His first book, A Hummock in the Malookas was selected for the National Poetry Series by Mary Oliver in 1994. He lives in Brooklyn, New York, and teaches at NYU. He can be reached at luminousfork@gmail.com.
(Photo credit: Gary Kenney) -
Reviews
Even through the clamor of war, garbage trucks, stolen cars, and crying babies, Rohrer maintains an alluring tranquility, a Taoist chill to temper a casualness that might otherwise get flagged as too hip. Li Po and Rumi drink jugs of wine, “Wu Wei" presides calmly over the lovely closing poem that takes his name, and clouds drift from one poem to the next.
Michael Brodeur, The Boston Globe
Rohrer’s frequently beautiful, brief poems are rooted in specific images that initially seem unrelated—but which ultimately form a unity as meditations on how the ordinary distractions of everyday life can be seen as the source for almost everything important in life.
Ken Tucker, Entertainment Weekly
Rohrer writes poems that crackle and sputter, often branching toward new meaning and emotion within the span of a single line.
Publishers Weekly
Reviews of books by Matthew Rohrer
The Sky Contains the Plans
The Others
Surrounded by Friends
Destroyer and Preserver
Rise Up
A Green Light
Satellite -
Poems
- Two Poems (in The Offing)
- “The Sun Goes Down on the City of Light” (in T Magazine)
- “There Is Absolutely Nothing Lonelier” (in The New York Times)
- “After Catullus” (on Poets.org)
- “Poem for Starlings” (in The Morning News)
- “[Do you get any reception here?]” (in The The Poetry)
- “The Emperor” (on Poets.org)
- “Pavilion of Leaves” (on Poets.org)
- “Enough with Abstraction” (in La Petite Zine)
- “Epithalamium” (in Poetrying)
- “From Mars” (in Verse Daily)
- “The Terrorists” (in paperbag)
- Three poems (in Loaded Bicycle)
- A selection of poems (at The Poetry Foundation)
Interviews
- The Creative Independent, with Willis Plummer
- Best American Poetry Blog, with Kristina Marie Darling
- Andrew-vs-Books, with Andrew James Weatherhead
- Bookslut, with Ruth Tobias
- BOMBlog, with Susie Deford
- Matthew Rohrer and Anthony McCann interview each other at Studio One
- The Believer, with Rachel Zucker and Wayne Koestenbaum
- Neon Pajamas, with Ben Niespodziany
Articles
- On Electric Light Orchestra
On collaborations with Joshua Beckman
- Jordan Davis, The Village Voice
- Nina MacLaughin, The Boston Pheonix
- Interview with Joshua Beckman and Matthew Rohrer in Painted Bride Quarterly
- Three collaborative poems (in Octopus)
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Audio
- Summer Poem
-Matthew Rohrer reads five poems from Surrounded by Friends for Poets & Writers
- Matthew Rohrer’s page on PennSound
- Readings at the Knox Writers' House
- Matthew Rohrer reads “Poem Written With Basho” for PBS NewsHour
- Matthew Rohrer and Joshua Beckman’s collaborative reading at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC, Spring 2010
- A discussion of Rohrer’s poems, the imagination, and the Superbowl at The Poetry Foundation
- The editors of Poetry magazine discuss Rohrer's “Poem Written with Bashō” at The Poetry Foundation
- An interview with Matthew Rohrer about Surrounded by Friends, for Rachel Zucker’s blog Commonplace
Video
Reading at the Grolier Poetry Bookshop:
Opening the 2007 Griffin Poetry Prize Awards:
Collage Hour from A Green Light (Wave Books, 2004):
