Rare are the instances where comedy and poetry cross paths and even rarer are the times where comedy and poetry effortlessly oscillate between getting to the very marrow of one’s emotions and having a hilarious line or phrasing that is the perfect comedic subversion. While dirty limericks and early Andrew Dice Clay nursery rhymes will endure as off-color comedic artifacts of yesteryear, Derrick C. Brown, a legitimately celebrated poet and comedian, actually forges that aforementioned beautiful crossover between true poesy and satirical vulnerability, especially when it comes to the works curated in his latest book, Love Ends in a Tandem Kayak.

Brown has actually toured with many clear-cut comedians including Eugene Mirman as Derrick is a poet with a peculiar sense of humor (or maybe a comedian with a uncanny handle with expressing the existential frustrations of life through stunningly perfect diction and choice imagery), resulting in innocent-ish mischief run rampant throughout this book, “You said you needed me, and it felt as good as floss after corn.” It’s clear that Derrick has opted for veritable punchlines in many of his stanzas, but does so in a way that still highlights the splendor of imperfection.

That dynamic evens shows up in jokingly meta chapters names such as “CHAPTER WHERE THE AUTHOR REMEMBERS WHAT HE IS HERE FOR” or titles such as “Prince Doesn’t Need to See Your Legs, Dude”. The contrast between that clever mischief and unflinchingly deep explorations of desire, purpose, and the overwhelming nature of the human experience is something truly special. Almost every final stanza or line lands at a sincere place almost devoid of pretension, just beautifully and humorously naked.

So, go get your copy of Derrick C. Brown’s Love Ends in a Tandem Kayak, available now from Write Bloody Publishing, and whir in your feelings while grinning wryly/busting up in hearty laughter.