RIP Jim Carroll

There will always be a poem
I will climb on top of it and come
In and out of time,
Cocking my head to the side slightly,
As I finish shaking, melting then
Into its body, its soft skin
--Jim Carroll, "Poem"
from Void of Course


I first discovered Jim Carroll in the early 90s while in college.
There was a dusty copy of "the people who died" in our college radio station and I was drawn to its raw honesty. Later that same year, the movie version of the Basketball Diaries came out. After seeing the movie, I rushed out to the local book store to get a copy of the book (small town - I of course had to order it). I have since owned several copies because I often give mine away when someone tells me they have never read it.
The book lead me to his poetry and a love affair began.
Jim Carroll was simply put, brilliant!
His writing is brutal, raw and profoundly honest, but it is also beautiful and moving. Even when at his lowest - there was a sense of hope in his words.

I just want to be prue.