Published February 2014
Books
DALT WONK
THE RIDDLES OF EXISTENCE
(LUNA PRESS)
You can choose to take playwright and poet Dalt Wonk’s latest, The Riddles of Existence, at face value and treat this oversized deck of cards as a literal game, where a short verse and illustration lends clues to each card’s depicted costume, to be paired with an index on the last card that includes titles like “The Worm,” “The Atom Bomb,” or quite vaguely, “Metamorphosis.” “The Light Bulb,” for example, is depicted as a bearded fellow with a tightly wrapped torso, accompanying filament crown and the verse “Fashioned like an ornament / although intended for a use, / I valiantly combat the dark, / but shatter at the least excuse.” (Though all the costumes aren’t so easily deciphered.) I find this collection works best with the “rules” dismissed entirely and treated as its own tarot deck, each card a hint at some invented mythology or divination, like a prop out of a Borgese story. The release of The Riddles of Existence is well-timed for Mardi Gras season, as it could be the perfect post-parade party game, to be enjoyed by a well-juiced crowd—like a poet’s charades—or even alone, where one can simply keep occupied with each expressive image (and its equally spry verse) until carnival’s excesses wear off. —Dan Fox
Join Simon Blake and Dalt Wonk for an Artist Talk and Signing to celebrate their new book, “Lonely Voyagers”. The first shipment of 100 books sold out almost immediately. After being held in Customs for 6 weeks, the rest are finally here!