The night my father died the WinterOlympics blared fromthe floating TV. They skied downthrough the closed-captioned snow.My father looked screwed, a sparetire under the double bed. A purple marble like a giant eyefloating above his bed.I cracked it on glass, he said.His Ahab tattoo frowned under a dim lamp.Chalk in a cheek to pump down the shaky jaw.The drinker’s face repeats.Somewhere in Nagano a neon sign blinksmaking the faux fur gleam.
My Broken Tooth
Charles Kell
Feature Date
- February 5, 2025
Series
Selected By
Share This Poem
Print This Poem
“My Broken Tooth” from Ishmael Mask: by Charles Kell.
Published by Autumn House Press in March, 2023.
Copyright © 2023 by Charles Kell.
All rights reserved.
Reproduced by Poetry Daily with permission.
In Ishmael Mask, Charles Kell reminds us that identity is precarious. Kell’s collection is a collage of the journeys and interior lives of various wanderers—from Ishmael, the son of Hagar, to Melville’s Ishmael, and from Pierre of The Ambiguities to Pierre Guyotat. Each poem strips back the mask and beckons us to witness humanity in its barest forms. Captain Ahab’s leg, Ishmael’s arm, and Pierre’s severed head serve as invitations to consider hunger and hope. The inspirations behind these poems—the Bible, Heraclitus, Melville, Guyotat, Tomaž Šalamun—are transformed by Kell, conjuring dreamscapes both dazzling and haunting.
Ishmael Mask masterfully allows a glimpse into the human experience of feeling lost—even when right at home, even in our own bodies.
Poetry Daily Depends on You
With your support, we make reading the best contemporary poetry a treasured daily experience. Consider a contribution today.