A. di Michele’s The Mollifier was published by the synaesthesia press in November 1996.
When people ask me to describe it, I usually tell them it’s “Joycean HyperText.” That’s not my phrase—it’s how Andy described his own work, and who am I to argue with the author?
Usually that earns me a puzzled look.
“What does that mean?”
Exactly.
Go read it.
Part fiction, part linguistic experiment, part philosophical prank, The Mollifier occupies that fascinating territory where language itself becomes the subject. Like much of di Michele’s work, it refuses easy classification. The influence of Joyce is certainly there, but so are traces of critical theory, poetry, situationist thought, and a distinctly Southern strain of literary mischief. The result is a text that feels simultaneously playful and challenging, as if the language is constantly rearranging itself beneath your feet.
Di Michele also provided the illustrations for the chapbook, giving the project a visual coherence that perfectly complements the text. At the time, he was part of a loose network of poets, small-press publishers, and literary experimenters whose work circulated through little magazines, handmade books, and alternative publishing venues far removed from the literary mainstream.
One biographical note I found years ago described him as a “lingual neuro-situationist trans-bard and furniture/environment deconstructor.” That may be the most accurate literary biography I’ve ever encountered.
My favorite di Michele line remains:
“poets would do better to work in sweatshops rather than sweat in workshops.”
That should tell you everything you need to know.
