GOODMAN JONATHAN FRANZEN

Goddamn Jonathan Franzen
For writing so deliciously well,
About characters I don’t particularly like,
But can’t help listening.
We read these stories,
Searching for clues
About the mystery of things.
As if there were something there
To discover,
About ourselves, our work, our lives,
About love,
That we didn’t already know.
As if we could capture
In the placement of pen on paper,
The clacking of keys to make words,
The song,
Living in your next breath.