Major influences: Lorrie Moore, Richard Brautigan, Lillian Hellman, Truman Capote, Carson McCullers, Sloane Crosley, Sarah Vowell, David Rakoff, Saul Bellow, Jeffrey Eugenides, Joseph Heller, Ray Carver, Mary Gaitskill, Flannery O'Conner, Nate west, Richard Wilbur, Frank O'Hara, Mary Robison, Paul Bowles, Lydia Davis, Rebecca Solnit, Joan Didion, Barry Yourgrau, Amy Hempel, Amy Bloom, Tennessee Williams, Elizabeth Bishop and never underestimate Miss Dorothy Parker... When the nightly news has you hiding under the covers, Pamela August Russell’s wry, sardonic wit is here to help navigate the delicate world around us. Miss Russell writes bittersweet, mercurial and very funny poems about the hazards of love and the economy: “Capitalism Can Fall Not Like I Fell for You”; love and commercialism: “But L’OREAL Said I Was Worth It.”; or love and failure: “A Beginners Guide To Mediocrity.” B IS FOR BAD POETRY is a collection of poems from a new voice that is supremely witty and delightfully engaging. Who knew bad poetry could be this good? "Nothing lasts forever--except a poetry reading." -Anonymous  

The girl with the most cake