"Poetry is really a weapon. It's a spiritual weapon for the transformation of the world. And, of course, all my poems are love poems. The nicest thing in the world is to propagandize for love."--Jack Hirschman

"Jack is a very American voice. He certainly aims to be the Voice-of-the-People--of course, he would define 'the people' in Marxist terms."--Lawrence Ferlinghetti

In this unique collection of new and previously published work by San Francisco's Poet Laureate Jack Hirschman, a lighter, humorous side of the award-winning poet is revealed. Even in his most ardent political pieces, Hirschman's playful side shines through ("New World Odor"). Known for his commitment to social justice, Hirschman often frames ordinary urban moments with extraordinary clarity ("Folsom Prison Haiku"), gently guiding the reader to a new way of seeing. Also included are acerbic reflections on the fall of Communism ("Red-Baiter"), tender memorials for friends ("The Day Bobby Kaufman Died"), and melodious love poems ("A Woman's Darkness").

The Last American Valentine, illustrated poems to seduce and destroy, (writebloody publishing) is an anthology of exhilarating modern love poetry. Each author has been paired up with some of the best American graphic designers for this annual collection of stunning work. Featuring acclaimed authors, musicians and barflys such as MICHAEL MCCLURE JACK HIRSCHMAN MINDY NETTIFEE RICHARD SWIFT NATHAN WILLET (cold war kids) RICK LUPERT BRENDAN CONSTANTINE BEAU SIA AGNETA FALK MICHAEL ROBERTS MICHAEL C FORD BUDDY WAKEFIELD AMBER TAMBLYN JOHN GARDINER CRISTIN OKEEFE APTOWICZ SHAPPY SEASHOLTZ ROGER BONAIR AGARD LYNNE PROCOPE VICTOR INFANTE DERRICK BROWN 216 pages. Paperback. writebloody.com

The fourth volume of the San Francisco Poet Laureate Series, All That's Left is a powerful collection of poems for social justice by street-poet-turned- laureate Jack Hirschman. The volume opens with Hirschman's autobiographical inaugural address, which vividly traces his career as poet, translator, and agitator. Included are several of Hirschman's earlier poems, marking successive stages of his poetic development. The poems following the address were composed during his tenure as poet laureate, covering contemporary outrages like post-Katrina New Orleans and the Virginia Tech tragedy, paying homage to fallen poetic comrades like Jack Kerouac and Bob Kaufman, and exploring more personal dimensions of love.

Pier Paolo Pasolini (1922-1975) was a major cultural figure in post-WWII Italy, well-known as a poet, novelist, communist intellectual, and filmmaker. "In Danger" is the first anthology in English devoted to his political and literary essays, with a generous selection of his poetry. Against the backdrop of post-war Italy, and through the mid-'70s, Pasolini's writings provide a fascinating portrait of a Europe in which fascists and communists violently clashed for power and where journalists ran great risks. The controversial and openly gay Pasolini was murdered at the age of fifty-three; "In Danger" includes his final interview, conducted hours before his death.

In the activist verse of this poetic warrior, always committed, the actual world is never out of mind, even in his most intimate poems. Kabbalist, populist, and communist, Hirschman has published over sixty books of his own poetry, and this representative selection is a cross-section of his poetic output, spanning many years and mutations. When he reads aloud, the words take fire, and on the page they crackle and spark. "Hirschman is tender but tough, with a steel fist in his velvet glove." -San Francisco Chronicle "What this poet brings to us, beyond ideology, is the simple truth that we already know and so immediately recognize: we have to stop hating each other, killing each other, raping each other, and start loving each other." -Poet News "...one of the left's most prolific and consistent poetic voices." -Contemporary Poets "For a poet as prolific as Jack Hirschman, the 224 pages of his new City Lights book Front Lines -- a selected poems covering a half-century of work from 1952 to 2001 -- gives us only a fraction of his gargantuan output over that long, productive arc. (With over one hundred books of original work and translations at last count.) With a deft touch, he has lifted many of the best poems from these years, giving us a consolidated, if not a "best of" Hirschman reader, in which the turning of each page causes something of a small epiphany, if not outright cause for celebration." -Asheville Poetry Review "The publication of Front Lines ...serves as an appropriate celebration of Jack Hirschman's 70th birthday and his staying power as a poet of conscience." -Bloomsbury Review Jack Hirschman is a San Francisco poet, translator and editor. His powerfully eloquent voice set the tone for political poetry in this country many years ago. He is the author of numerous books of poetry, plus some forty-five translations from a half a dozen languages, as well the editor of anthologies and journals.

Over 200 people submitted their work to this city-wide poetry contest and reading series, which collects poetry from each of San Francisco's 11 districts. Sponsored by Friends of the SFPL and the San Francisco Public Library, poets were selected by former San Francisco Poet Laureate Jack Hirschman. Poetry of all types was accepted-from haikus to free verse, narrative to rhyming-and poetry in native languages was highly encouraged. This year's Poets 11 received a tremendous amount of beautiful and thought-provoking poetry authored by talented writers.

This book is simply a treasure. Carol Tarlen's poems bring the human and political together in rich, heart-felt ways. I can't help wishing Carol was still with us, but we should all be extremely grateful to have this fine collection of her work out in the world as a legacy and tribute to her compassion for others, and her passion for writing and for life. She had an uncompromising commitment to the truth without sentimentality or condescension. Carol Tarlen was a Straight Shooter. In "Nellie Perkiss Speaks Her Mind," she writes "The news don't never tell the way it really is." Well, Carol Tarlen always told things the way they really are. These poems deserve a wide and diverse readership-read this book, and pass it on. -Jim Daniels, Poet & Professor, Carnegie Mellon University Born of pink-collar solidarity, Carol Tarlen's activist poems speak up, sass back, and never, ever cross a picket line. Keep this book next to your heart when standing up for workers. With Tillie Olsen and Meridel LeSueur, Every Day Is an Act of Resistance belongs on every bookshelf in America. -Karen Kovacik, Poet Laureate of Indiana Tough girl, quiet Quaker, brilliant poet, worker for the working-class, Carol Tarlen punctured the masks of bourgeois insularity-but with grace, good humor, and more kindness than many deserve. Her luminous poetic voice is large, direct, high-steppin, and justice-driven. Go ahead join the Angels Liberation Front and read her poetry, teach it to your children. -Janet Zandy, Professor of Language & Literature, Rochester Institute of Technology

Although Amber Tamblyn is best known as the star of the smash hit Joan of Arcadia, she is a serious poet, mentored by Jack Hirshman, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and other San Francisco Beat poets. She has self-published two chapbooks, and her poems have appeared in books published by City Lights. Here is her first collection of poems specifically for teens. The poems relate to teen issues such as love and relationships, and all are influenced by Amber's feminist sensibility. An introduction by Jack Hirshman puts her poetry in a literary context, and her personal introduction gives insight into her poems and helps readers access them. Amber's celebrity will help bring the value of poetry to a new, wider audience.