From the Sounds of Chewing

George Pereny is the real shit, says Jim Klein in his intro to George's From the Sounds of Chewing. That may seem a strange way introduce From The Sounds of Chewing, but I have my reasons. First, I’ve known George ever since the fall of 1972 when I started teaching English at Fairleigh Dickinson University, Rutherford, and George was doing grad work there. George’s voice is as clear and pure as George is. He’s had the experience all right, but his voice is natural and innocent. Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience, George actually combines both. The apparent effortlessness of his work even gets me thinking back to the Aeolian harp, the Romantic image of inspiration caused by the wind blowing through the mountains. George has distilled the complexities of who he is, and was, and yearns to be into the verse testimony you have in your hand.