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Cave Canem Poetry Prize
Zero to Three: Poems
What started out as a way to address dealing with parenting and, in particular, fatherhood, became a series of poems focused on familial roles and situations that are difficult to articulate, even among family members. The poems in Zero to Three mark both the change in the child and in the father, who is also a son himself. The term “zero to three” derives from the developmental period that many clinicians and pediatricians believe is the most fundamental phase for children whose delicate brains are undergoing drastic and formative change. Research also shows that parents undergo formative change alongside their children during this period from conception to toddler age.
These poems do not intend to offer a definitive stance on parenting or fatherhood but, rather, to capture an emotional gestational period that extends beyond the womb and exceeds beyond the grave. They celebrate pop culture and family, as well as lament the anguish and frustration of a parent losing his temper or a parent losing a parent. Ultimately, these poems attempt to sing and dance in the fact that parenting is a wonderful mystery to witness and experience.
These poems do not intend to offer a definitive stance on parenting or fatherhood but, rather, to capture an emotional gestational period that extends beyond the womb and exceeds beyond the grave. They celebrate pop culture and family, as well as lament the anguish and frustration of a parent losing his temper or a parent losing a parent. Ultimately, these poems attempt to sing and dance in the fact that parenting is a wonderful mystery to witness and experience.
- GenresPoetry
96 pages, Paperback
First published October 15, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 27, 2014
I received this book through Goodreads Advanced Read Giveaway.
Poetry is not my strong suit, so if you understand poetry and are able to break it down, this book may be the perfect fit for you! I struggled with it a little. It tells the story of a child and those that interact with the child, from zero to three, just like the title says. This is an important span in the development of a child. My favorite of the poems is My Daughter Speaks of Bitter. Zero to Three is a short read. I think it would be a good focus for a high school or college poetry class. How many times can someone read Ginsberg before their head explodes? Mix it up a little professors!
Poetry is not my strong suit, so if you understand poetry and are able to break it down, this book may be the perfect fit for you! I struggled with it a little. It tells the story of a child and those that interact with the child, from zero to three, just like the title says. This is an important span in the development of a child. My favorite of the poems is My Daughter Speaks of Bitter. Zero to Three is a short read. I think it would be a good focus for a high school or college poetry class. How many times can someone read Ginsberg before their head explodes? Mix it up a little professors!
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November 20, 2017Oh heyyyyy, I reviewed this over at The Rumpus back when it came out: http://therumpus.net/2015/07/zero-to-...
November 3, 2015
I was actually fortunate enough to have Mr. Brown as a teacher for an English class my sophomore year of high school, and when this book came out, I had to grab a copy, and I'm so glad I did. I don't think there's a piece of poetry in here I didn't enjoy reading and analyzing (yes, I'm one of those people). Would recommend for anyone who loves poetry and/or loves their kids.
March 15, 2024
Zero to Three Review
The book of poetry Zero to Three, written by F. Douglas Brown, takes a deeper look into the relationship between a father and his daughter. Many of the poems focus on events that took place in the daughter’s life as she was growing up. There are also poems that examine the role that family members play in a child's growth. There are many memories throughout the poems that are significant times in the child's life. Not only is the author a father to his daughter, but also a son who has his own relationship with his father.
In one poem titled “Divorce Attempts to Answer My Daughter’s Questions,” the poet is trying to convey to his daughter that he is going through a change in life that will affect both of them. She is asking him questions related to the situation, and he is trying to answer them in the best way possible that does not put her in a difficult position. At one point, his daughter asks him, “Is mommy your girlfriend how come you don't love mommy?”(Brown, 23) He is unsure how to answer this but wants to ensure that he is answering truthfully and in a way that his daughter will not retaliate against him. This seems to be one of the poet's main goals in making sure that he is able to be open with his daughter yet understand that she is so young that she will take everything he says with a grain of salt. Later, in the poem “The Talk,” the daughter reveals events in her life to the father and mother. It is written as a back-and-forth between what the mother says and what the father actually told the little girl. When the mother tells her daughter, “We didn’t know birth control, just the sex”(Brown, 30), it shows that the mother is more factual when she is speaking to her daughter about the realities of life. The progression of the poetry then takes the reader to the later stages of life in which we learn that the author’s now “stricken with my stepmother's Alzheimer's, so much could often go missing.”(Brown, 57) Life goes through stages, and in this stage, life is lost, and all you are left with is memories. When Alzheimer's takes hold of a person, the first thing that they lose is those memories.
This book of poetry is a representation of watching a person grow and fighting out ways to handle a particular stage of growth. With each stage of maturity, there are new obstacles to handle, and with parenting, you are not always able to think about the right answer or what is next. The book of poems will not be for everyone, but there is a way for everyone to connect to at least one of the poems and its message.
The book of poetry Zero to Three, written by F. Douglas Brown, takes a deeper look into the relationship between a father and his daughter. Many of the poems focus on events that took place in the daughter’s life as she was growing up. There are also poems that examine the role that family members play in a child's growth. There are many memories throughout the poems that are significant times in the child's life. Not only is the author a father to his daughter, but also a son who has his own relationship with his father.
In one poem titled “Divorce Attempts to Answer My Daughter’s Questions,” the poet is trying to convey to his daughter that he is going through a change in life that will affect both of them. She is asking him questions related to the situation, and he is trying to answer them in the best way possible that does not put her in a difficult position. At one point, his daughter asks him, “Is mommy your girlfriend how come you don't love mommy?”(Brown, 23) He is unsure how to answer this but wants to ensure that he is answering truthfully and in a way that his daughter will not retaliate against him. This seems to be one of the poet's main goals in making sure that he is able to be open with his daughter yet understand that she is so young that she will take everything he says with a grain of salt. Later, in the poem “The Talk,” the daughter reveals events in her life to the father and mother. It is written as a back-and-forth between what the mother says and what the father actually told the little girl. When the mother tells her daughter, “We didn’t know birth control, just the sex”(Brown, 30), it shows that the mother is more factual when she is speaking to her daughter about the realities of life. The progression of the poetry then takes the reader to the later stages of life in which we learn that the author’s now “stricken with my stepmother's Alzheimer's, so much could often go missing.”(Brown, 57) Life goes through stages, and in this stage, life is lost, and all you are left with is memories. When Alzheimer's takes hold of a person, the first thing that they lose is those memories.
This book of poetry is a representation of watching a person grow and fighting out ways to handle a particular stage of growth. With each stage of maturity, there are new obstacles to handle, and with parenting, you are not always able to think about the right answer or what is next. The book of poems will not be for everyone, but there is a way for everyone to connect to at least one of the poems and its message.
April 19, 2020
Douglas Brown is a poet at the intersection of the avant-garde and tradition. Mixing experimental work with formalism, his work tackles three generations of his family history from his mother and father, his own rite of passage, and episodes with his son and daughter.
His award-winning book, Zero to Three is a tome of 32 poems about fatherhood, love, loss, American pop culture and the roller coaster range of emotions that are all a part of what it means to exist in the 21st Century. Published by the University of Georgia Press, this volume was the winner of the Cave Canem Poetry Prize in 2013. The poems utilize formal structures like ghazals, sonnets, catalogues and segmented cantos with more experimental styles like stream of consciousness and prose poems.
His award-winning book, Zero to Three is a tome of 32 poems about fatherhood, love, loss, American pop culture and the roller coaster range of emotions that are all a part of what it means to exist in the 21st Century. Published by the University of Georgia Press, this volume was the winner of the Cave Canem Poetry Prize in 2013. The poems utilize formal structures like ghazals, sonnets, catalogues and segmented cantos with more experimental styles like stream of consciousness and prose poems.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews