Monday Night released its third chapbook, Nomenclature, by Niko Nelson in 2019.
Praise for Nomenclature:
“What distinguishes Niko Nelson’s work from that of many young poets is her willingness to listen to the silent music of thought. In Nomenclatures, the visionary is grounded in the things of cityscapes, the everyday keeping us from our self-same selves.”
–Paul Vangelisti, author of Days Shadows Pass and Agency
“Nomenclature is an an intriguing exploration of the human psyche in which the speaker’s possible mental illness is set against the backdrop of a civilization in decline (indeed, the first section is aptly titled “Of Gotham”). The work touches on the unknowable mysteries of many different realms, ranging from mainstream religions like Christianity and Buddhism to others more obscure such as the occult “until someone looks me in my right mind / my third eye,” the zombie apocalypse (“I was one un-capital h standing on the hill’s sidewalk freshly bitten” and numerology: “the numbers game is breaking / the stench breathing … names and numbers floating.” Nelson takes the reader on an existential journey from the physical world to fantasy, from East Coast to West, where one encounters both a place of clear, evident limits and also infinite possibility.”
—Valerie Witte, author of A Game of Correspondence
“Niko Nelson’s poems are soul-maps for navigating our post-apocalyptic urban landscapes. They mark time, they take names: “the 6AM bait for getting out/of bed still be Academies/stifling language and sporting/short haircuts.” Writing the world for what it is, these poems suggest, is an act of resistance and survival. “murder’s where the music’s at/where silence be detectives/finding themselves dying/because god of our time/don’t sell trash bags/or motivation East/of 9th street”. These poems captivate while they deliver the news in a spare, laser cut language that commands the reader’s attention.”
—Tiff Dressen, author of Songs from the Astral Bestiary
Price: US$10+S&H
