C.W. Blackwell on "Reno" by William R. Soldan

For Day 2 of the Cruelest Poetry Month, the following commentary by Five-Two alum C.W. Blackwell. —Gerald So


Call it “grit lit” or “dirty realism,” the visceral style of melding crime and noir elements in modern poetry feels like it’s buzzing with energy these days, and one of the leaders in this space is poet and author William R. Soldan. His poem “Reno” recently appeared in Close To the Bone’s 4.4 monthly poetry feature:

The poem is soaked in classic noir imagery. Even the title sparks memories of seedy pawn shops and greasy spoons. Indeed, Soldan reminds us on the first line that we’re in the Biggest Little City in the World, revered among authors and poets as a city of downtrodden casinos and topless bars, encased in a rind of snow bloodied by alleyway fistfights.

At first, this seems lost on our young protagonist, who sees the city as “just another dour oasis no different than the last.” We meet an uncle or uncle-like figure with a sordid past, who has a rap sheet that includes robbing casinos and who looks to the protagonist “like a son.” Soldan excels at chronicling the relationships of people living on the razor’s edge, people who are steadfastly loyal to their kin while breaking all the laws in the penal code.

The second stanza introduces us to a sister of the uncle-figure. Is it an aunt? Again, family is a mental construct—and this family grows up fast. She’s been around both literally and figuratively, turning tricks throughout the American west to feed a drug addiction. When she buys the protagonist “smokes and a cold sixer” the action conveys an endearing coming of age moment, and perhaps a sense that for the first time, the protagonist is seen as an equal in the adult world. Here, Soldan gives us a knockout line when he tells of the woman’s husband and how he committed suicide, leaving “nothing but a ghost and red memory.”

In the end, the characters fade away like all the heroes of our formative years. The protagonist wonders about them, evoking nostalgia for a time he got his first taste of an exciting adult world, a world that for many (including the heroes of this poem) often becomes too much to carry. These sentiments and others throughout “Reno” cement Soldan’s reputation as a poet with the heart of a novelist.

I recommend fans of “Reno” pick up a copy of William R. Soldan’s five-star debut poetry collection So Fast, So Close for a highly enjoyable thrill-ride. —C.W. Blackwell