Review of Patron Emeritus by Chad Parenteau

Minimalist poems, like those in Patron Emeritus by Chad Parenteau, imbue each word with a density of meaning that demands resolution and balance. Without careful calibrations stanzas would fall off the page and punctuation could explode. Parenteau not only avoids these pitfalls but successfully plays off the tension created by them. At heart these poems are narrative, although the stories, culled from the common experience of day-to-day living, the poet rubs raw, dices, compresses, and then highly polishes. For more of my review of Patron Emeritus go here:  http://dougholder.blogspot.com/2013/06/patron-emeritus-by-chad-parenteau.html