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National Poetry Month: Gwendolyn Brooks
Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) published her first poem in a children’s magazine when she was 13; by 17, she had some 75 published poems in her portfolio. At 33, she received the Pulitzer Prize for...
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Terrance Hayes’“Lighthead: Poems”
To read Lighthead: Poems by Terrance Hayes is to enter a world that’s distinctly uncomfortable, almost jarring, as if the familiar has become dislocated. Perhaps it’s like experiencing lightheadedness,...
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National Poetry Month: Gwendolyn Brooks
Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) wrote poetry for more than 70 years, and has the distinction of being the first black author to win the Pulitzer Prize (in 1950 for Annie Allen: Poems). She also received...
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Poets and Poems: Patricia Smith
Poet Patricia Smith doesn’t read her poetry. She performs it. Her performances fuse poetry and acting into something distinctly, well, distinctly Patricia Smith. Performances aside (for the moment),...
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Eating and Drinking Poems: Rita Dove’s “Chocolate”
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, this Eating and Drinking Poems post from Kathryn Neel combines her trademark sense of history, ironic humor, and impeccable taste in food. For those of you still...
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Poets and Poems: Gwendolyn Brooks’ ‘Selected Poems’
My childhood was 1950s and 1960s New Orleans, during the last hurrah of segregation. I often rode the buses with my mother, who hated to drive into the city, and I learned which section of the bus we...
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Eating and Drinking Poems: Lucille Clifton’s ‘Cutting Greens’
Today’s Eating and Drinking Poems post is for all the nostalgic or displaced Southerners out there, who yearn for collards, but live far from comfort food havens or the homes of plump southern...
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Maya Angelou: The Poetry and Life of Reinvention
She was an unlikely candidate for literary success. Raped at age seven by her mother’s boyfriend; mute for years afterward; a single mother at 17; a performer at a strip joint and operator of a...
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Take Your Poet to Work: Langston Hughes
Ever wish you could take your favorite poet along with you to work? Someone who would help you come up with just the right line, at just the right time. Maybe Langston Hughes could sit in on that big...
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Poets and Poems: Willie Perdomo and Saeed Jones
The five finalists for the National Book Critics Circle Award for poetry are, on the face of it, an eclectic group of poetry collections. And perhaps more than just on the face of it. Published...
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Poets and Poems: Claudia Rankine and “Citizen”
The fifth nominated work for the National Book Critics Circle Award for poetry is Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine. It is as different from the other nominated works as they are from...
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Take Your Poet to Work: Maya Angelou
It’s one thing to start every day with a poem. But another altogether to start your day with a poet. One of our favorite days of the year is fast approaching, when we encourage people around the world...
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Forward Prize for Best First Collection: “Wife” by Tiphanie Yanique
The poetry of Forward Prize winner Tiphanie Yanique may redefine words like “arresting, ” “jarring, ” and “mind-altering.” Yanique’s Wife won the Forward Prize, given by the Forward Arts Foundation in...
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Persecuted Poets: Hearing the Voices Beyond Our Borders
I see a way in the darkness. I am a lantern. —Illuminations by Sohrab Sepehri (Iran) America has long defended its hard-won and cherished right to freedom of expression. Sadly, we often take that and...
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Reading Together: Rita Dove’s ‘Thomas and Beulah’
“I think if Beulah was a star, she’d want to be the sun” —Sandra Heska King, commenting on “Daystar” In May, I heard Rita Dove interviewed by Derek McGinty on The Diane Rehm Show, and she read her...
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The Pulitzer Prize for Poetry: “Olio” by Tyehimba Jess
The first thing you notice about Olio by Tyehimba Jess, which won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, is that it looks like no book of poetry you have ever seen. It’s oversized, 8 by 10 inches, with a...
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Honoring Gwendolyn Brooks: The Golden Shovel Anthology
If you’ve never heard of the Golden Shovel form of poetry, you’re not alone. It’s relatively new, created by National Book Award winner Terrance Hayes to honor Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) in her...
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The Poets of Instagram: r.h. Sin and “I Hope This Reaches Her in Time”
I’ve watched a video on Facebook that I almost can’t stop rewatching. It’s produced by Jay Shetty, a British relationship coach, host, former monk, and, as he says, someone who is all about “making...
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Children’s Book Club: “Brown Girl Dreaming”
Dear Writers, How many of you wrote a book and “published” it when you were a child? I did — and illustrated it too. “Sammy and Mary” was a love story between two squirrels. I wrote and drew the book...
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Read Like a Writer: Second Person Narrative Voice in Claudia Rankine’s...
When I come across a brilliant writer pulling off second person brilliantly, I’m tempted to think it’s not that special. It’s just another tool in the writer’s toolbox that I might make use of one...
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