An up and down poetic ride through the life and times of an American writer living in the margins and his sometimes surrealist/situationist/realist view of the world around him.This book contains so many styles, forms, variations on themes and images that it is in a category all its own. It is apparent that this is a complete work that is the culmination of a life lived on the edge with an original voice that will sometimes echo as if it is emanating from that void that is engulfing the last bit of reality in this universe.From the early influence of Walt Whitman, Poe, Eliot, Pound, Langston Hughes, Allen Ginsberg, Anne Waldman, Bukowski, Wanda Coleman, librarians & bookstores, ruins of Hollywood & Venice Beach, history of his birthplace in Brooklyn and the place he was raised in San Bernardino, life on the road, life in prison, life strung all the way out to the interactions with today that cause the writer to keep writing in spite of it all, it is all here.A. Razor's Beaten Up Beaten Down is a trip through an experience that touches so many familiar places, yet will seem so new in its vision of this world that every reader will come away with a new perspective of their own life after reading this book. From the introduction by S.A. Griffin to the last page you will be in for a beating that you will never forget and will hopefully continue to prosper from.
About the Author: A. Razor was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. in 1963, but was brought to California at the age of 1. He began writing and publishing around 1980 in various underground zines and publications, first in the Los Angeles area, then ever expanding outward from there as he was discovered by Drew Blood Press, Ltd. in 1984, where he published 11 chapbooks up to 1995. He has read his work at many readings and spoken word events over the years and been published in many types of publications, ranging from those that are considered reputable to those that are of ill repute. He has fought hard to live and express his art in many different ways and in many different places. He became a member of the Hollywood Institute of Poetics in Los Angeles, CA in 2009. He has participated recently in the Poets In Prison panel at Beyond Baroque and the 2011 ALOUD reading series held at the Downtown Los Angeles Public Library. In 2012 he teamed up with Iris Berry to launch Punk Hostage Press, which has released 5 titles of his own work and where he has edited 10 more titles from as many writers, Danny Baker, Iris Berry, C.V. Auchterlonie, Carolyn Srygley-Moore, Rich Ferguson, Dennis Cruz, Frank Reardon, Alexndra Naughton, SB Stokes and Hollie Hardy. He collaborated on book cover designs with graphic artist Geoff Melville for many of these books. His long anticipated offering, 'Better Than A Gun In A Knife Fight' was released in May, 2012 on Punk Hostage Press, edited by Iris Berry with an introduction by Bucky Sinister. 2012 also saw the release of 'Drawn Blood: Collected Works on D.B.P., Ltd.1985-1995', also on Punk Hostage Press and with an introduction by Maureen McNally. A small, 48-page, commemorative edition of A. Razor's work was released just before December and entitled 'Small Catastrophes in a Big World', edited by the author. Also out in 2013 was a 50 poem collection to celebrate the author's 50th birthday, entitled 'Half-CenturyStatus'. Last December in 2014 he released a holiday themed collection, 'Days of Xmas Poems'. 2015 will see the hopeful release of the long awaited collection of short stories, 'Long Winded Tales of the Low Plains Drifter' and the poem/prose book 'Puro Purismo'. His writing has always explored the world that he has sought to be a part of and to rebel against at the same paradoxical moment. He has traveled extensively, seeking and enduring everything from homelessness and imprisonment to serenity and peace.