.jpg/1200px-Lake_Mendota_-_panoramio_(10).jpg?20170417193629 "A Student's First Book of Poems")
In my poet’s biography, I usually state that I began writing after retiring from library work. That is not quite true. Like many book lovers, I wrote poems in college. In 1974-75 the poets I met in Literatura Hispanoamericana inspired me. How could anyone remain unaffected by José Martí’s “Dos Patrias?”* Even though my Spanish… Continue reading A Student's First Book of Poems
Tag: Poetry
A Poem from Plantain by Anna Akhmatova, translated by Jane Kenyon. The Twenty-first.
First I want to say that the poem is a perfect expression of the literature I discovered with a thrill as a young woman. It speaks in a clear, clean voice. Its theme is passion and disappointed love. This voice still speaks to me, though I am decades past “young.” It’s a poem of the… Continue reading A Poem from Plantain by Anna Akhmatova, translated by Jane Kenyon. The Twenty-first.
I Must Hold These Strangers by Sandra Lynn, Book Review
I puzzle over Sandra Lynn. Her poetry is marvelous. Since 1976, when I first discovered her work, I have been in awe of her skill, her command of imagery and metaphor, her themes. Yet all we have of her body of work today are the poems found in two books: I Must Hold These Strangers, published… Continue reading I Must Hold These Strangers by Sandra Lynn, Book Review
Morning Reading #12
Mary Oliver’s poems deserve a place in worship.
Authors' Roundtable
I attended FestivALL’s Authors’ Roundtable today. FestivALL is the name of Charleston, West Virginia’s city-wide arts festival. I wanted to learn more about the present state of poetry in West Virginia and it is going strong. The four poets, Mary B. Moore, Elizabeth Savage, Cameron Barnett, and James Harms, were each remarkable, and the emcee,… Continue reading Authors' Roundtable