Corner Stores in the Middle of the Block

by Brad "BLUE" Bathgate

Corner Stores In The Middle Of The Block places you in the slums of an amusing yet painful intersection, where the color blue remains the color on all streetlights and seat belts don't exist. Poetry... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0971258120
• ISBN13: 9780971258129
• Release Date: December 2016
• Publisher: Great Persuader
• Length: 114 Pages
• Weight: 0.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.7" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Good Stuff Derrick "Blue" Wilson:

Most of the time this kind of poetry has the tendency of being mundane, predictable, and angry, and when you reach the point of utter annoyance insofar as getting bored to tears with this kind of material you end up relegating it into the superfluous junk pile of literature. But this isn't the case with Blue's work. Blue actually holds individuals in the black community culpable for their own actions and his anecdotes paint a cathartic milieu of urban life in the inner city. In layman's terms Blue demonstrates that everyone is capable of making their own breaks and that passing the blame onto others for misdeeds, shortcomings, and failures does an injustice to ones self and future generations to come. Also, he successfully romanticizes what I would call Marvin Gaye's "Inner City Blues", while writing about what I believe are his personal experiences with women, love, romance, lust, capitulation, recalcitrancy, and humorous moments. A case in point: in the first three lines of his poem called "Hope," Blue wrote: "Hope is the four letter word that was spoon-fed to the hungry. Done in an effort to sustain their hunger, temporarily It's similar to welfare" He then goes on to illustrate tales about the people in his neighborhood, while describing their dysfunctional behavior in a rather comedic style. He then writes about a girl named Cinnamon, who just can't seem to get a grasp on things and yet even with her short comings Blue still loves and respects her efforts because even though she falters, she does it out of love for him. What I liked the most was that Blue doesn't take himself too seriously and he doesn't engage in any racism and inasmuch as social justice is concerned. He places personal responsibility upon the shoulders of inner city society when it comes to certain issues that are within their control, which is a refreshing position to adhere too. All I can say is, "it has been a long wait for poetry that eloquently travels the Straight Talk Express!" Outstanding work!!!

Encore.

I ran into Blue down in Atlantic City a few years back, and he made a lasting imprint on my heart. I heard him speak and his words and emotions scorched our hearts like fire. The utterance of his last word grabed me out of my seat and forced my applause, everyones applause. Encore. The MC signaled for him to bless us with another verse or another thought. Word up! Fortunately, I had the opportunity to hear his work. If you aren't Harlem shaking it up in NYC, or dropping a couple thousand at Blackjack in Atlantic City, cop this book and I am sure he will show you what a corner store in the middle of the block looks and feels like. Encore.

Great Work!

I bought his book from him, one day while on the train and it was really good. I started reading it while with my son right after He signed it... and the poems had me smiling. A Couple came up to me and asked if the book was 'that good?' I said yes and they said they should had purchased it from him while he was on the train. Looking forward to reading more. Keep the good work up.