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Sidewalk Stories Paperback – April 3, 2017

by Francis DiClemente (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 3 ratings
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What poet and songwriter Rob McKuen created during the turbulent late ’60s and ’70s in San Francisco with his book Stanyan Street and Other Sorrows, Francis DiClemente has accomplished in Sidewalk Stories. With the backdrop of the gritty streets of Syracuse, New York, DiClemente manages to create a poetic canvas and find beauty in the midst of the harsh realities of life in upstate New York.

—Joanne Storkan, screenwriter and film producer (Honest Engine Films)

Sidewalk Stories is an inspired collection of meditations and personal vignettes, vividly capturing the range of human experience. Francis DiClemente channels his inner Charles Bukowski to present an unflinching look at youth and encroaching middle age. Amidst unprepossessing urban decay, we meet a cast of characters whose stories of regret and missed opportunity are probably as much DiClemente’s as they are their own. That some of them manage to remain sanguine about the future—and their mortality—is part of DiClemente’s charm as a storyteller. These poems leap off the page and onto the sidewalks of our imagination.

—Rob Enslin, author / journalist

In Sidewalk Stories, poet Francis DiClemente invites us to be his companion on an intimate journey. We walk with him on gritty sidewalks, observe through his eyes the plight and the beauty of the beings with whom we share the world. An old woman, a blind man, a little girl twirling, even a rabbit and an overturned turtle are viewed with deep compassion. Here is a poet who doesn’t just look; he sees. And his vision is no less unflinching when he brings us with him into his own life.

But don’t worry. Though many of DiClemente’s poems are infused with a sense of loneliness, they also convey a stronger sense of courage and endurance. And watch for the irrepressible whimsy and humor as, for example, a cowboy lassos a star, and when the poet rants about the tyranny of poetry. With each poem in this collection, DiClemente will take you deep inside a thoughtful man, and then, deeper inside yourself.

—Kathleen Kramer, playwright and poet; author of the poetry collections Boiled Potato Blues and Planting Wild Grapes

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    114 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    April 3, 2017
  4. Dimensions
    6 x 0.26 x 9 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1945752807
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1945752803
  7. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Francis DiClemente is the author of five poetry collections, most recently Dreaming of Lemon Trees: Selected Poems (Finishing Line Press, 2019). His blog can be found at francisdiclemente.com.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Kelsay Books (April 3, 2017)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 114 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1945752807
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1945752803
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.26 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 3 ratings

About the author

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Francis DiClemente

Francis DiClemente

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Francis DiClemente lives in Syracuse, New York, where he works as a video producer. He is the author of multiple poetry collections, most recently The Truth I Must Invent (Poets' Choice, 2023) and Outward Arrangements: Poems (2021). His blog can be found at https://francisdiclemente.com/. He is on Twitter @FranDiClem.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
3 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Louis Cecile
4.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful journey from a sage
Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2017
In reflection, when finishing this poetry collection the main word that comes to mind is sage. There is a sense of going on a journey of an American landscape and being given introspections by a wiser soul. Like most people who are led and told information, it depends on your personality whether you wish to hear it fully.

There is a mixture of styles in this collection that have an impact on pacing. With muses from the beginning, it gives a slow start allowing you to take a look around at the author is trying to convey. The pace then quickens with more traditional non-rhyme poetry that tackles the everyday subjects of life.

Poets often reflect on why they are both mesmerised and partake in writing poetry. The author again muses on these concepts in section three of the collection with a beautiful beginning incorporating the one and only Charles Bukowski.

Love and imagery dictate the last sections with a particularly advisory note being the tone in section 4. The final section focuses slightly more on metaphors, but there is an interesting underlying bleakness in the subject. There is a sense of despondency following this journey through life. With the title of the last poem being of particular importance to this shift in mood.

There is a depth to this collection that requires a re-read to ensure you capture the points of the sage on this fascinating journey. The imagery and poetic sections shine brightest and the muses tend to pause the pace for thinking. At the end of reading this collection, you will certainly have much to contemplate.
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Loretta Lynn
3.0 out of 5 stars the ebb and flow of the words read more like annotated journal entries
Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2018
Sidewalk Stories took the reader on a guided, observational tour of New York through the eyes of the author. As far as poetry went, the ebb and flow of the words read more like annotated journal entries. It was free-form without much rhythm. All the entries told a story, which was very nice. It was clean, well-written, and overall not bad.
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