“Gentle moonbeams,” “midnight waters” and “singing cottonwood leaves,” are some of the quiet, vivid images Marcie Rendon evokes in her latest book of poetry, “Anishinaaabe Songs For a New Millennium,” which gets released next Tuesday. Divided into two parts— “Dream Songs” and “Performance Songs,” Rendon’s introspective meditations, songs of connection to earth and ancestors, and her decisive voice make for an enriching read.
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In the introduction, Rendon writes that she drew inspiration from Gerald Vizenor’s book, “Summer in the Spring: Anishinaabe Lyric Poems and Stories,” first published in 1963. “This book validated my own writing style and encouraged me to continue to write short verse in the style of my ancestors,” Rendon writes.
Vizenor’s book itself draws on transcriptions of Native songs/poems from the 19th century, which Vizenor brings to life with his own concise and visual language. Like Vizenor’s versions of the traditional lyrics, Rendon’s poems often resemble Haiku poetry, at times only taking 2-4 lines. In those lines, Rendon brings the viewer into a richly detailed world, created with an economical amount of carefully chosen words and phrases.
Other poems are a bit longer and share luminous visions of ancestors traveling through time and trees, through flowers and the sky. She’s writing from a place of wisdom, but also from a place of not having time for nonsense. Some of the works reveal grief, as well as anger, and there are demonstrations of wry humor at times too.
In the second part of the book, “Performances Songs,” you can imagine as you read the theatricality to many of the works. (Rendon wrote several as part of collaborations with composer Brent Michael Davids, and there are pieces from Rendon’s plays as well.) I enjoyed reading these, and also was eager to hear the music/see the theatrical context in which they were originally written. I did find this video published by the American Composers Forum, featuring one of Rendon’s collaborations with Davids, though this particular work isn’t in the book.) In any case, the second half of the book had a heightened quality that contrasts nicely with the dreamy hum of the first half.
Birchbark Books and Native Arts will be hosting the launch event for the book where Rendon will be in conversation with Lyz Hakoola, featuring a song by Anishinaabe traditional singer Mark Erickson. It’s on Tuesday, July 16 at 7 p.m. at 1629 Hennepin Avenue #275 in Minneapolis (free). More information and reservations here.
Sheila Regan
Sheila Regan is a Twin Cities-based arts journalist. She writes MinnPost’s twice-weekly Artscape column. She can be reached at [email protected].