C. J. Prince
BLONDE NOIRE, C. J. Prince. Ravens’ Song Press, Bellingham, WA, 24 pages, $5 paper.
I tried looking up Ravens’ Song Press, but the Internet didn’t offer anything. No matter. All you have to do to get your hands on this book is drive to Bellingham, drop in on almost any poetry reading, and ask for C. J. She’s probably there.
Well, after the Pandemic you can find her.
As you know if you have been following my blog for long, I have been writing a mystery novel. It is now 95,000 words and I’m going on 3 years on this project. Meanwhile, C. J. has written a mystery–a sort of an old-time riff on a film script of a movie you must have seen before / poetry mash up–in 24 very small pages. It has a detective, Mr. Colavita, and a “dame,” Blondie, who “warbles like a nightingale.” Here’s an excerpt:
I got money, Mr. Colavita. Please.
Blondie snaps open her beaded black purse.
See? I got a deposit here.
She leans out of the booth,
nervous-like
and checks the front door.I think I’m being followed.
She’s a dish worth chasing
but murder’s another story.
Tomorrow morning (I know the date says it’s already tomorrow) I’ll have the last book for you. Thanks for reading along. If you ever want to borrow any of these books, look me up. 😉