About Rich Murphy
The Apple in the Monkey Tree (Codhill Press) was Rich's first book. His second book Voyeur was published in 2009 (Award Winner 2008, Gival Press). Chapbooks include Family Secret (Finishing Line Press), Hunting and Pecking (Ahadada Books), Phoems for Mobile Vices (BlazeVox), Rescue Lines (Right Hand Pointing) and Great Grandfather (Pudding House Publications). Recent poetry may be found in Pennsylvania Review, Fjord Review, Otoliths, Epiphany, Euphony, The Straddler, James Dickey Review, and Trespass. Recent prose scholarship on poetics has been published in Imaginary Syllabus, Anthology chapters, Palm Press, Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning, The International Journal of the Humanities, Fringe Magazine, Reconfigurations: A Journal of Poetry and Poetics, The Journal of Ecocriticism, Folly Magazine, Imaginary Syllabus, (Palm Press), and “Reading Wisdoms: Mick Jagger, W.B.Yeats, and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak” will be published by New Writing: The International Journal for the Practice and Theory of Creative Writing. Derek Walcott has remarked for the cover of Rich's book Voyeur: “Mr. Murphy is a very careful craftsman in his work, a patient and testing intelligence, one of those writers who knows precisely what he wants his style to achieve. His poetry is quiet but packed, carefully wrought, not surrealistically wild, and its range not limited but deliberately narrow. It takes aim.” Erin McKnight’s review may be read at Prick of the Spindle: http://www.prickofthespindle.com/reviews/3.4/small_presses/murphy/voyeur.htm. Alvin Malpaya’s review may be read at Rattle http://rattle.com/blog/2010/08/voyeur-by-rich-murphy/. Janelle Adsit’s review in The Pedestal Magazine may be read at http://www.thepedestalmagazine.com/gallery.php?item=11965. Erica Goss’ review may be found in Main Street Rag, winter 2010 issue. “Body of Evidence” was 2011finalist Eudaimonia Poetry Review Chapbook Prize, and “Crib Sheets” was 2011 finalist Teacher’s Voice Poetry Chapbook Prize. I live in Marblehead, MA.
Neighbor Relations Catching a sunny shade of flush, each pouch of air greets a palm, while whistling into oblivion. The flocks of angels compose the floating wool of skies at the cemetery’s prize. Iris for cornea, the poke of revenge exacts its violence for beings alive: politics over heaven. The blind party of thumbs punch and hors d’oeuvres of deception wrestle into grounds. The diplomat of preemptive strikes grabs attention of foe to farm using foreign toil and soil. … Read on…
Today’s Story Hour
Tooth-fairy agnostics wear calluses
on atheist funny bones.
While the choir harmonizes
spare change with children at play,
the fence-sitting cracks up
a dumpy hump at Notre Dame. Read on…
Cities’ Limits
Faith in death frees the worshipper
from consequence and result. Atheists
dance with rabbits feet and patches,
extending joyful relics ad nauseam.
Monks slobber around china, bumping
against one end of broad daylight
to the other, letting chain reactions
chug at the ends of their lines. Read on…
