Introducing Mike was another great store friend, David McGimpsey, who happened to be Mike's professor back in his days at Concordia. In praise of Bourbon & Eventide, David offered that he appreciated the book's interesting formal structure, as well as Mike's outstanding writing and wit. He declared, quite ardently, "I love noodles, but I also love this book." High praise indeed!
After David's intro, Mike took to the stage to read some selections from the book. First, he explained that Bourbon & Eventide sprung from long conversations about the difference between a collection of poems and an arifact, whilst drinking bourbon with David, his friend and mentor. He also told us that 10 years ago to the day, he left Costa Rica to start an undergrad degree in creative writing at Concordia, though at the time he had no real aspirations towards becoming a published writer!
Mike explained that Bourbon & Eventide is comprised of 112 tercets, "rather than the longwinded poems that I usually write," and that they represent memory as fragments examining the history and mythology of a failed relationship.
