Beating the Lilies

Matthew Young is a new beat poet, and also a Doors fan, the second name Young --- in this case is correct --- because both the poetry and the poet are! I especially dug: 'Brendan Behans' Glass', 'Diet Christ', 'Dreaming Like A Symphony' and 'Dublin Ramblings'; amongst the 247 pages of Matthew's first poetry works in his new book: BEATING THE LILIES. Meeting Matt a couple of years ago on a poetry reading trip with other Doors fans in that low-lit Rue de la Roquette passage, near my fave Parisian hotel the Royal Bastille --- we hung like Beats and talked poetry and Doors stuff; and hung with a chick called Kat who was into Hemingway: all outside in the cool breeze of a July night. This cat is a traveller and a seeker, and what comes through on these works of his, is a man in touch with the true spirit of Beat! ... like all good poetry you'll have to read some of these a few times over --- to lean on all the angles... Darryl Read Berlin February 2008 www.darrylread.com