{"id":4239,"date":"2022-01-10T22:17:49","date_gmt":"2022-01-10T22:17:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost:8000\/?page_id=4239"},"modified":"2023-03-22T00:46:27","modified_gmt":"2023-03-22T07:46:27","slug":"review-of-void-of-course-by-paul-mcdonald-jim-carroll-book-reviews-catholicboy-com","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/research\/book-reviews\/review-of-void-of-course-by-paul-mcdonald-jim-carroll-book-reviews-catholicboy-com\/","title":{"rendered":"Review of Void of Course by Paul McDonald – Jim Carroll Book Reviews – CatholicBoy.com"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n
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\nHome<\/a> > Research<\/a> > Book Reviews<\/a> > Review of Void of Course<\/i> by Paul McDonald<\/span><\/p>\n

Void of Course<\/i><\/h2>\n

Review by Paul McDonald
\nLouisville Eccentric Observer<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Jim Carroll reaffirms his prowess as mentor and scribe of the human condition.<\/p>\n

Poet\/Diarist Jim Carroll’s new book of poetry begins with a powerful commentary on
\n addiction and grace entitled “Eight Fragments for Kurt Cobain.” Although
\n addressed to the late songwriter, it’s pretty obvious that on certain levels, Carroll
\n perceives Cobain as a reflection; otherwise his words would not carry so much authority: <\/p>\n

\n “…And you shoved the barrel in as far as possible\/Because that’s where the pain
\n came from\/That’s where the demons were digging…But Kurt\/Didn’t the thought that you
\n would never write\/another song\/another feverish line or riff\/Make you think twice?\/That’s
\n what I don’t understand\/Because it’s kept me alive, above any wounds…”\n <\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Carroll first bared those wounds in his book The Basketball Diaries <\/i>, a
\n collection of journal entries written in the early sixties between the ages of 11 and 15,
\n where he documented his descent into heroin addiction and life on the streets of New York.
\n In the fall of 1966 Carroll began to attend poetry workshops at the St. Mark’s Poetry
\n Project and his interest in writing, poetry in particular, deepened. Eventually, portions
\n of The Basketball Diaries <\/i> later appeared in The Paris Review <\/i>, and
\n no less than Jack Kerouac was moved to write that “…at 13 years of age, Jim Carroll
\n writes better prose than 89% of the novelists working today.” Carroll followed this
\n up with Forced Entries <\/i>, another book of journals written in the early
\n seventies, where he chronicled his experiences of detoxing from heroin and hanging out
\n with the New York Arts and Literary crowd, which included living at the Chelsea Hotel with
\n Singer\/Poet Patti Smith and controversial photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. In the early
\n eighties he formed The Jim Carroll Band, a prototype of the punk\/grunge movement, that
\n produced several albums including the critically acclaimed Catholic Boy <\/i> and
\n the alternative hit single “People Who Died.” In 1995, “The Basketball
\n Diaries,” was made into a film starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Yet throughout his career,
\n Carroll has never lost touch with his original muse. He has continually produced a number
\n of books of poetry, the latest of which is Void of Course: Poems 1994-1997 <\/i>,
\n published by Penguin Books. <\/p>\n

“Eight Fragments for Kurt Cobain” sets the stage for seventy-five poems that
\n range from short, humorous observations about Buddha and William Burroughs, to the surreal
\n dreamlike qualities of “Crown of Thorns” and the outright cathartic stream of
\n consciousness of “While She’s Gone.” In the first poem, we see Carroll speaking
\n as an elder barely a generation removed from Cobain. Carroll’s identification with Cobain
\n gives this work an added edge not only because of their connection with popular culture,
\n but primarily because Carroll managed to survive his ordeal. No one, save those junkies
\n who have lived as Carroll had, could possibly understand what Cobain was going through.
\n Yet Carroll’s elegant lyricism deftly communicates his sorrow and disappointment. <\/p>\n

One of the things that never ceases to amaze me about Carroll is his astute economy of
\n language. With laser precision he is able to craft an idea and bring forth a vision with
\n as few words as possible. In “Facts” he observes, “It’s own wisdom has\/
\n Left Holland in ruins.” In “The Bakery” he writes “Everything I’ve
\n learned I have stolen\/From her pockets everything I have\/Written I’ve learned on her
\n lips.” And, in one of the many pieces titled “Poem,” he tells us, “I
\n can see\/A future which belongs to a starved audience…\/Coming this way to create\/A false
\n sense of balance.” <\/p>\n

One of the strongest works in the book, “While She’s Gone,” is a monumental
\n epic of need and loss where Carroll takes us through nine pages of bone to the rail
\n despair, recalling the lover that has left him: “I chew on the pubic hairs you left
\n on the sheet\/Like a country boy chews on a blade of grass as he walks\/Near a pond,
\n skimming flat rocks across the water.\/If the angels knew, were kind\/That is where I’d
\n be…With our tongues we could tie the laces of angels\/Light or fallen, no matter\/Your
\n thighs moved as smoothly as Latino gangsters…” <\/p>\n

Throughout this book, Carroll consistently refers to the images of demons, angels,
\n snakes and fire as symbols of passion and transformation. While the title of the book,
\n Void of Course <\/i> may denote a sense of loss or lack of direction, Carroll
\n decides that if he is indeed moving through some kind of purgatory, he will not be idle
\n and let the darkness overwhelm him. Carroll embraces his demons and in doing so they are
\n transformed to daemons, or sources of wisdom and genius. No poet worth his salt can do
\n less. Void of Course <\/i> reaffirms Carroll’s prowess as mentor and scribe and of
\n the human condition. <\/p>\n

<\/a> \u00a9 Paul McDonald<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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\n\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Home > Research > Book Reviews > Review of Void of Course by Paul McDonald Void of Course Review by Paul McDonald Louisville Eccentric Observer Jim Carroll reaffirms his prowess as mentor and scribe of the human condition. Poet\/Diarist Jim Carroll’s new book of poetry begins with a powerful commentary on addiction and grace entitled … Continue reading Review of Void of Course by Paul McDonald – Jim Carroll Book Reviews – CatholicBoy.com<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":3988,"menu_order":8,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"folder":[41],"class_list":["post-4239","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/P9VlUH-16n","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4606,"url":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/research\/book-reviews\/review-of-void-of-course-by-benjamin-segedin-jim-carroll-book-review-catholicboy-com\/","url_meta":{"origin":4239,"position":0},"title":"Review of Void of Course by Benjamin Segedin – Jim Carroll Book Review – CatholicBoy.com","author":"catholicboy.com","date":"January 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Home > Research > Book Reviews > Review of Void of Course by Benjamin Segedin Void of Course Review by Benjamin Segedin Booklist 95.4 (15 Oct. 1998): 389 Carroll, Jim. Void of Course. Oct. 1998. 119p. Penguin, paper, $12.95 (0-14-058909-0). DDC: 811 Carroll, experienced with heroin himself, offers belated advice\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4237,"url":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/research\/book-reviews\/review-of-void-of-course-by-heather-perry-jim-carroll-book-review-catholicboy-com\/","url_meta":{"origin":4239,"position":1},"title":"Review of Void of Course by Heather Perry – Jim Carroll Book Review – CatholicBoy.com","author":"Cassie Carter","date":"January 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Home > Research > Book Reviews > Review of Void of Course by Heather Perry Void of Course Review by Heather Perry The Trumpet December 1999 Void of Course is a book of poetry written by Jim Carroll. Carroll is also a diarist and rock musician. His work is not\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3988,"url":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/research\/book-reviews\/","url_meta":{"origin":4239,"position":2},"title":"Book Reviews","author":"catholicboy.com","date":"January 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Here you will find a few of the many reviews of Jim Carroll's books. Eventually I will add more, but for now you can check out the Bibliographies page for many others I have not yet added to the website. Reviews of The Petting Zoo (2010) View reader comments on\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9873,"url":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/research\/music-reviews\/paul-mcdonald-review-of-pools-of-mercury-louisville-eccentric-observer-1998\/","url_meta":{"origin":4239,"position":3},"title":"Paul McDonald – Review of Pools of Mercury – Louisville Eccentric Observer 1998","author":"Cassie Carter","date":"May 30, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Mercury risingBy Paul McDonaldLouisville Eccentric Observer \"When you hear Jim Carroll's voice,you know you're in for an interesting ride.\" Back in 1994, Jim Carroll was recording some songs with Pearl Jam that would later be included on the soundtrack for the film \"Basketball Diaries.\" Carroll had been thinking of returning\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4603,"url":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/research\/book-reviews\/review-of-void-of-course-jim-carroll-book-review-catholicboy-com\/","url_meta":{"origin":4239,"position":4},"title":"Review of Void of Course – Publishers Weekly","author":"Cassie Carter","date":"January 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Publishers Weekly 28 Sept. 1998 (p. 96) Jim Carroll. Penguin, $12.95 paper (l28p) ISBN 0-14-058909-0 An alternately self-exposing and swaggering Bukowskian diarist, Carroll reinforces his rock-star-like pop culture niche with his latest volume of poetry, which somewhat resembles a compilation of power ballads. Given that Carroll's fame was established by\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5872,"url":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/research\/performance-reviews\/jim-carroll-at-the-bottom-line-1999\/","url_meta":{"origin":4239,"position":5},"title":"Jim Carroll at The Bottom Line 1999","author":"Cassie Carter","date":"January 28, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Jim Carroll The Bottom Line, NYC 13 November 1999 (first Show) Review by\u00a0Kevin \u00a0 Brilliant !!!! Jim was wonderful. I attended the first show, full house. Jim shared a funny story about a passenger onboard a Southwest Airlines flight that basically felt it important to tell Jim how \"Jayne Mansfield\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"Website Logo","src":"images\/smchar.gif","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4239"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4239\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6021,"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4239\/revisions\/6021"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3988"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4239"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.catholicboy.com\/WP\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/folder?post=4239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}