From the acclaimed author ofWinter (Mirror)andRehearsal in Black, Fables of Representationis a powerful collection of essays on the state of contemporary poetry, free from the stultifying theoretical jargon of recent literary history.With its title essay, "Fables of Representation," one of the most cogent studies ever written of the New York School of poets (a group that includes the influential poet John Ashbery), this book is required reading for anyone who seeks to understand the poetry and culture of the postmodern period.Author Paul Hoover's wide-ranging subjects include African-American interdisciplinary studies; the position of poetry in the electronic age; the notion of doubleness in the work of Harryette Mullen and others; the lyricism of the New York School poets; and the role of reality in American poetry. Hoover also introduces two provocative essays sure to generate attention and discussion: "The Postmodern Era: A Final Exam" and "The New Millennium: Fifty Statements on Literature and Culture."Paul Hoover is the editor of the anthologyPostmodern American Poetryand author of nine poetry collections, includingTotem and Shadow: New and Selected PoemsandViridian. His poetry has appeared inAmerican Poetry Review, The New Republic,andThe Paris Review, among others. He is Poet-in-Residence at Columbia College, Chicago.