Heeltap No. 7

by Pariah Press. Issn 1091-9449. 2000. $5.00 c/o Richard D. Houff, 604 Hawthorne Avenue East, St. Paul, MN 55116-2012.

Book Review by Michael Basinski

Heeltap is a Pariah Press Publication. This particular issue begins with a big chunk of poem work by Lyn Lifshin - 7 poems in fact (this is issue 7). I guess I was wrong - 5 poems. I am a ritter not an a math-geek. And then followed by four poems by Todd Fox. Later on there are poems by Gerald Locklin, Robert Peters, Holy Day (Isn’t she from Florida?), Peter Magliocco (Isn’t he from Nashville?), Albert Huffsticker (Isn’t he from Texas)? Well, you see - this is really a congress of poets - this is a UN meeting or an, you know an Olympic Village of sorts, or a jug volcanoing with the exotic.

Ok - so we have here a magazine that consistently presents American work. Poems for dishwashers, cab drivers, - all the workin people - not the rich kids back from France whose Ma and Pa paid for the first 10 issues of the glossy pornographic Nork York City rag that features only other rich kids back from France - no and not and nope. Here some bus driver, and lunch room worker with hair net on head, the slave at Starbucks, the slaves of Nike, the postal worker (not the office postal workers - the slaves luggin the bag around), the guy that grinds up your hamburger, the retarded woman that cuts you a half pound of baloney. Wake up would you! Treat this editor: Richard Houff. With a letter with some stamps or send him a huge chunk of kilbasa. Here is a short poem by Paula Villegas: _I love men with blue caps

They keep their heads on so well_