Nancy’s Reads & Reels: Billy Collins and “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”

I was privileged to hear Billy Collins read his poems at Emory. I’ve been trying to read more poetry and Billy Collins is a reminder that poetry can be accessible to anyone. Most of the poems he read made us laugh and that’s a good thing.

Billy Collins, 2001-2003 Poet Laureate of the United States, got me, after many years, to give poetry a chance. I bought his book, Questions About Angels, in 2001 and brought it with me to his reading at Emory and got his signature.

Billy Collins poetry can be about anything—dogs, people, postcards, weather, and even a lanyard -- thoughts that come to everyone but he puts them down on paper in a style all his own.

His poem Dog begins: I can hear him out in the kitchen/his lapping the night’s only music/head bowed over the water bowl/like an illustration in a book for boys.

So, I’m not giving up on poetry—more books to buy!

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close has gotten incredibly poor reviews and yet is nominated for an academy award.

After reading The Submission about a 9/11 memorial, I wanted to see a movie about 9/11 and its aftermath. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is easy to find fault with but its newly discovered star, Thomas Horn as Oskar, is engaging.

Tom Hanks appears only briefly as his usual affable self. Sandra Bullock as Oskar’s mother is well cast. Max Von Sydow is only in the movie for 15 minutes but is nominated for a supporting actor award.

Made me want to read the book to perhaps get a more coherent story. No matter, the movie is worth seeing.