English Instructor Perdomo Publishes Fourth Book

English instructor William Perdomo published his fourth book last week, a collection of poems titled The Essential Hits of Shorty Bon Bon. Perdomo, an accomplished poet, is also the author of the collections Where a Nickel Costs a Dime, Postcards of El Barrio, and Smoking Lovely, which won the PEN Open Book Award.Published Tuesday, The Essential Hits of Shorty Bon Bon is infused with his childhood experiences growing up in the Upper East Side of New York City.It alternates between musical poetry and letters in the form of prose. “I would call it a phantom memory, an attempt to recall, or a love letter,” Perdomo said. “The main impetus was my love for 1960’s Latin Soul music, the role of ceremony and ritual in my community, a kind of celebration of my mother's memory, and a way of communicating with my uncle who played with one of the more formidable bands of his era.”The collection, which was published to great critical acclaim, displays Perdomo’s intricate grasp of language and his ability to artfully intertwine the feel of soul music into verse.“Willie Perdomo excavates the history and colors of son and salsa down to the bones of slavery and into the vivid streets of Nuyorican America,” poet Tyehimba Jess wrote in a review.Perdomo greatly enjoyed the challenge of playing with shorter more lyrical poems. Each led him to ask questions of himself and his childhood, how events could had turned out differently, and how the poems would sound to reflect the rhythms he grew up listening to. A long revision process allowed him to perfect his poetry."You have to spend time with a collection and be patient; it's like being in a Harkness discussion, experiencing a silence and not imposing on the silence; an idea might be brewing that could break a discussion wide open. Same with a book; the silences need to be respected,” Perdomo said.Perdomo’s success is the result of a lifetime of work. “I've been writing poetry for almost twenty years,” Perdomo said, “but I'm just now beginning to realize my practice. I started writing poetry in ninth grade and the poems were downright awful.”But Perdomo stuck with poetry, inspired by a childhood mentor. “I had a mentor who was a poet, and one day I went to one of his readings and was so inspired that I decided to follow in his literary path,” he said.The Essential Hits of Shorty Bon Bon marked Perdomo’s first work by Penguin, a internationally esteemed publisher. Perdomo encountered the company via a recommendation from his professor, directly after he finished his Master of Fine Arts thesis at Long Island University. Perdomo sent the manuscript in to his original editor, Norton, but to his surprise and delight, Penguin contacted him first.Moving from a smaller, more personal publishing firm like Norton, Perdomo was content with the efficiency of Penguin. “It's been a pretty fluid, glitch-free process.""Having just merged with Random House, Penguin has become part of a conglomerate,” Perdomo said. “You really see the difference when you work with a bigger publishing house; there's a virtual machine at work from the copyediting process to distribution.”Perdomo hopes to continue to write poetry and will likely stay with Penguin. “As a courtesy and contractual obligation, you should always send your publisher the next manuscript. They should have the right to reject it first,” Perdomo said.Fellow members of the English department are inspired by the publication of his new book. “We are all thrilled at the publication of Mr. Perdomo’s new book,” English instructor Ellen Wolff said. “He is not the only published author in the English department, but the teachers are always excited to see their colleagues’ pieces get published, especially to such a well-known publishing company.”Perdomo, who is new to Exeter this year, is known for his high spirits and is loved throughout the English department. “Mr. Perdomo has been a spectacular colleague,” said English instructor Tyler Caldwell. “He is generous with his ideas and with his experiences teaching writing. He adds a terrific optimism and positive energy to the department.”After successfully completing and publishing three collections, Perdomo hopes to continue to write poetry. Perdomo brings a few words of advice for aspiring young authors: “Make time to read and write. With any discipline, practice is a requirement.”