Songwriter Leonard Cohen is also a poet, and in “Songs and Poems, ” he mixes song lyrics with poetry, suggesting there’s little difference.
Reading & Books Prompt: Lose Yourself in a Book
Put down the device and journey with us as we learn more about our attention span and the joy of getting lost in a book. Then get lost in your poetic thoughts and write them down.
A Mistake Becomes a Discovery: John Holmes
A wrong shipment by Amazon turned into a discovery of poet John Holmes (1904-1962), who wrote his own poetry and encouraged other poets.
Reading ‘Spoon River Anthology’ for the Third Time
“Spoon River Anthology” is one of the great works of American literature, and reading it a third time yields new insights.
Memoir Notebook: Kate DiCamillo’s Newbery Medal Acceptance Speech
Kate DiCamillo listened to the approaching siren and thought it was the first time in her life she had heard that sound and not wondered who it was for.
Book Club Announcement: The Magician’s Elephant
Join us for our new book club coming up in September. We’ll be asking “what if” with Kate DiCamillo’s The Magician’s Elephant.
Norman Nicholson: Poetry of Landscape and the Environment
British poet Norman Nicholson deserves to be remembered for his beautiful poems of the Cumbrian and western Lake District landscape.
Finding Edna and Winifred in the Antique Shop
For 75 cents, Glynn Young purchases a book of poems by Edna St. Vincent Millay and considers both the poet and the woman who wrote her name on the inside cover.
Poets and Poems: Tina Barry and “Mall Flower”
In “Mall Flower, ” poet and writer Tina Barry combines poetry and short fiction to tell the story of a life – childhood, youth, and adulthood.
Canada’s 2016 Griffin Prize: Norman Dubie and Liz Howard
Canada’s 2016 Griffin Prize was awarded to Norman Dubie for “The Quotations of Bone” and Liz Howard for “Infinite Citizen of the Shaking Tent.”
Understanding the Life and Art of William Blake
Two books on William Blake, “Eternity’s Sunrise” by Leo Damrosch and “Blake: A Biography” by Peter Ackroyd, provide an in-depth look at the artist and poet.
In Search of William Blake
A close look at the poet and artist William Blake provides some surprising facts about a man largely unknown in his own lifetime.
Poetic Voices: Teow Lim Goh and Marjorie Maddox
Teow Lim Goh seeks meaning in an immigration detention center, while Marjorie Maddox seeks spiritual understanding in the the study of literature.
Charles Sorley and the Poetry of World War I
Charles Sorley (1895-1915) was a poet whose “When You See Millions of the Mouthless Dead” was one of the best-known poems of World War I.
Poetic Voices: Kelly Hansen Maher and Heather Derr-Smith
Poets Kelly Hansen Maher and Heather Derr-Smith write about lives as women, one on miscarriages and the other on relationships.
“Poetry: A Survivor’s Guide” by Mark Yakich
Poet and teacher Mark Yakich takes a serious and irreverent look at reading and writing poetry in “Poetry: A Survivor’s Guide.”
2016 Pulitzer Prize: “Ozone Journal” by Peter Balakian
“Ozone Journal’ by Peter Balakian, winner of the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for poetry, challenges, provokes, and helps us to see in a different light.
British Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy
British Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, the first woman to hold the post, writes powerful and beautiful poetry.
Book Club Announcement: The Joy of Poetry Begins May 4
We’ll be accepting Megan Willome’s invitation to experience The Joy of Poetry with our new book club beginning May 4.
“The Joy of Poetry” by Megan Willome
“The Joy of Poetry” by Megan Willome tells the story of her mother and herself, what poetry can do in a person’s life, and what it does in all of our lives.