Book: Todd Fabozzi’s “Crossroads”

He calls it “radical poetry.”

“Crossroads,” the second collection of poems and antipoems by Amsterdam poet (and antipoet?) Todd Fabozzi is now available. It is the follow-up to his debut book of poetry, “Umbrageous Embers.”

Fabozzi describes himself as “an urbanist, ecologist, writer, teacher and drummer.” He’s a longtime advocate of sustainable design and has lectured extensively on the consequences of suburban sprawl. He’s written numerous urban planning and watershed protection studies. He’s taught in classrooms – from elementary to graduate school. And, yes, he’s also the conga drummer with Nippertown salsa superstars Alex Torres & His Latin Orchestra.

Fabozzi’s poetry collections, “Crossroads” and “Umbrageous Embers,” are both available directly from the author, online from Troy Book Makers and at the following bookstores: Market Block Books in Troy, the Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza in Guilderland and the Book Hound in Amsterdam.

Here’s a sample poem from Fabozzi’s new book, “Crossroads”:

hanging out

shop talk in the glimmering sun
only words to string together the days
and empty pockets to hug empty hands

we stand and watch the cars go by
sipping cold cans
and sharing old stories
because they are the only ones we know

we offer a chair
if you’ll join us while we wait
and only ask that
you’ll laugh a little
even if it hurts

tell us your old lies again
tell us why crying won’t solve anything
tell us what you didn’t find
on the hard road to Eden

tell us why every car that passes
knows the same stories
and why they look when they see us laughing
as if there’s a secret they might miss.