Four Way Books, 2013 Paper: 978-1-935536-26-0 Library of Congress Classification PS3604.I4648B44 2013 Dewey Decimal Classification 811.6
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | TOC
ABOUT THIS BOOK
In his debut collection of poems, Begging for It, Alex Dimitrov leads us through the streets, bridges, and bedrooms of New York City, sometimes as far away as Buenos Aires and Iceland, and as close as our own darkest corners. A Bulgarian immigrant, Dimitrov writes as both observer of and fervent participant in this “American Youth,” as his speakers navigate both the physical and emotional landscapes of desire, intimacy, and longing—whether for a friend, a lover, or a self, “Saint or stranger, I still recklessly seek you.”
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
ALEX DIMITROV was born in Sofia, Bulgaria and lives in NYC. A recipient of the 2011 Stanley Kunitz Prize from The American Poetry Review, he is the founder of Wilde Boys, a queer poetry salon in NYC, works at the Academy of American Poets, teaches creative writing at Rutgers University, and frequently writes for Poets & Writers magazine.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Heartland • The Crucifix • Passage • Leaving for America, May 1991 • American Youth • The Underwear • Night Flights • St. Sebastian Questions a Terrorist • To the Thirsty I Will Give Water • America, You Darling • This Is a Personal Poem • This Is Not a Personal Poem • James Franco • Prayer for the New Year • Prayer in Hell’s Kitchen • The Composer’s Lover • Bloodletting • Self-Portrait as Brigitte Bardot in Contempt • In the Museum of Old Lovers • Lush • At Close Range • In This Economy Even Businessmen Go Down • Suit & Tie, 6’1, Married, Financial District • Minor Miracles • Begging for It • All Souls’ Day • Seven Chambers of a Wolf’s Heart • Beginning in Buenos Aires • A Second Heart Swims Up My Throat • Self-Portrait as Daisy in The Great Gatsby • Sensualism • The Burning Place • After Love • A Lover’s Discourse • His Red Ribs, Glittering • Uncomplicated Happiness • Grave Flowers • The Fates • Fugue in the Wrong Key • Evening • Blue Curtains • White Fire • Self-Portrait Without the Self • 21st Century Lover • I Will Be Loving • I’m Lonely and I Love It • Sleeping with Everyone • Heroines • Self-Portrait as Brett in The Sun Also Rises • Radiance • Red Desert • Nowhere Better Than This Place • Refusing the Ledge • We Are a Natural Wonder • The Why • Dear Friend: I have nearly died three times since morning • Darling • I’m Always Thinking About You, America • Notes
In his debut collection of poems, Begging for It, Alex Dimitrov leads us through the streets, bridges, and bedrooms of New York City, sometimes as far away as Buenos Aires and Iceland, and as close as our own darkest corners. A Bulgarian immigrant, Dimitrov writes as both observer of and fervent participant in this “American Youth,” as his speakers navigate both the physical and emotional landscapes of desire, intimacy, and longing—whether for a friend, a lover, or a self, “Saint or stranger, I still recklessly seek you.”
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
ALEX DIMITROV was born in Sofia, Bulgaria and lives in NYC. A recipient of the 2011 Stanley Kunitz Prize from The American Poetry Review, he is the founder of Wilde Boys, a queer poetry salon in NYC, works at the Academy of American Poets, teaches creative writing at Rutgers University, and frequently writes for Poets & Writers magazine.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Heartland • The Crucifix • Passage • Leaving for America, May 1991 • American Youth • The Underwear • Night Flights • St. Sebastian Questions a Terrorist • To the Thirsty I Will Give Water • America, You Darling • This Is a Personal Poem • This Is Not a Personal Poem • James Franco • Prayer for the New Year • Prayer in Hell’s Kitchen • The Composer’s Lover • Bloodletting • Self-Portrait as Brigitte Bardot in Contempt • In the Museum of Old Lovers • Lush • At Close Range • In This Economy Even Businessmen Go Down • Suit & Tie, 6’1, Married, Financial District • Minor Miracles • Begging for It • All Souls’ Day • Seven Chambers of a Wolf’s Heart • Beginning in Buenos Aires • A Second Heart Swims Up My Throat • Self-Portrait as Daisy in The Great Gatsby • Sensualism • The Burning Place • After Love • A Lover’s Discourse • His Red Ribs, Glittering • Uncomplicated Happiness • Grave Flowers • The Fates • Fugue in the Wrong Key • Evening • Blue Curtains • White Fire • Self-Portrait Without the Self • 21st Century Lover • I Will Be Loving • I’m Lonely and I Love It • Sleeping with Everyone • Heroines • Self-Portrait as Brett in The Sun Also Rises • Radiance • Red Desert • Nowhere Better Than This Place • Refusing the Ledge • We Are a Natural Wonder • The Why • Dear Friend: I have nearly died three times since morning • Darling • I’m Always Thinking About You, America • Notes