Schwartz and Hatry, Flacofolio

Flacofolio by Leonard Schwartz and Heide Hatry is a slender book of micro-essay/poetry/art that provides powerful flights of feeling, imagination, and inquiry as tribute to NYC’s beloved zoo-escapee owl, Flaco. This collection celebrates a realized dream of freeing caged beings, yet also acknowledges how Flaco, who became a kind of talisman for the city, was ultimately poisoned by the city. 

The book offers a crucial examination of the interconnectedness of ecosystems: how a poisoned rat equates to a poisoned owl and a global pandemic. 

 

The words, art, and subject-matter in Flacofolio are often immediate and fleeting, serving as a kind of memento mori by reminding the reader how short life is and that it’s best to soar free while we can. The poetic essays also showcase a hopeful recognition that all life has a spirit that can’t be destroyed. 

 

The eagle-owl escaped in winter…The burning lanterns of his eyes perhaps kept him warm throughout the first few nights and days. The soul does not remain in the world it was sent to.  (Schwartz & Hatry, p. 15)

 

The narrator’s lucid portrayal of Flaco's savoring wild rain and flying through night air is stunning, and evokes Nina Simone’s version of the song, “I wish I knew how it would feel to be free.”

 

These micro-essays are filled with surprising turns of phrases and announcements such as, “During this part of my flight Blue turns into Night.” (Schwartz & Hatry, p. 19) 

 

Flacofolio personifies Flaco in a playful way that feels respectful of the sublime nature of all creatures, including birds, animals, and humans. And it seems as though Flaco has owlified the narrator by the end of the book: the writing style is wise, empathic, ecstatic, and bookish in a way that's characteristic of owls.

While Flacofolio is one big owl ode it keeps the reader’s attention through textures and philosophical soul-searching, as in lines like, “The spiritual is unobservable. The city is soaked in the unobservable, despite all the cameras.” (Schwartz & Hatry, p. 53)

 

The book is also physically beautiful, with psalm-sized silky pages and intriguing owl-themed art throughout.