Info from Chapters Bookstore (Pittsfield) on upcoming events surrounding their "book of the month":
"The King's Grace," by Anne Easter Smith
All history records about Grace Plantagenet is that she was an illegitimate daughter of King Edward IV, and one of the two attendants aboard the funeral barge of his widowed queen Elizabeth Woodville in 1492. "The King's Grace" follows Grace's story and her search for the truth -- about herself, about her family, and about the man who claims to be king.
A native of the UK, Anne Easter Smith is an American citizen who has lived in the US for 40 years. She has lived in cities from California to Virginia and from New York to Washington D.C. Smith also lived for four years in Paris, first as a bilingual secretary at age 19, and then as wife to the assistant air attaché at the American Embassy in the mid-1970s. She is fluent in French and a self-proclaimed Francophile. She was the features editor at the Press-Republican in Plattsburgh, N.Y., for 10 years, and her writing has been featured in a number of national magazines. An actor and director in community theater and an erstwhile folksinger, Smith lives in Newburyport, Mass.
Author discussion and signing: 6 p.m. Friday, April 17
Book club meeting: 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 12
Chapters: 78 North St., Pittsfield. Phone: 413.443.BOOK.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Monday, April 13, 2009
poetry and poets
News about poetry and poets, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times:
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/p/poetry_and_poets/index.html
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/p/poetry_and_poets/index.html
Friday, April 10, 2009
poetry by teens
From The New York Times: A look at books of poetry by teenagers.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/12/books/review/Roiphe-t.html?8bu&emc=bua3
An excerpt from the article:
Assimilating the concision of poetry can be a useful exercise for the excesses of the teenage mind. How do you condense a conflicting and unmanageable universe into a simple line, or make sense of the rush of feeling? With its inherent, formal claim to importance, its pleasing aphoristic effect, the sheer drama of the wide margin, poetry offers a natural language for coming-of-age, which is probably why teenagers everywhere write lots of it.
FALLING HARD: 100 Love Poems by Teenagers
By Edited by Betsy Franco
144 pp. Candlewick Press. $15.99. (Ages 14 and up)
TELL THE WORLD
Teen Poems From WritersCorps
By 116 pp. Harperteen/HarperCollins Publishers. Cloth, $16.99; paper, $8.99.(Ages 12 and up)
MORE THAN FRIENDS
Poems From Him and Her
By Sara Holbrook and Allan Wolf
64 pp. Wordsong. $16.95. (Ages 11 to 14)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/12/books/review/Roiphe-t.html?8bu&emc=bua3
An excerpt from the article:
Assimilating the concision of poetry can be a useful exercise for the excesses of the teenage mind. How do you condense a conflicting and unmanageable universe into a simple line, or make sense of the rush of feeling? With its inherent, formal claim to importance, its pleasing aphoristic effect, the sheer drama of the wide margin, poetry offers a natural language for coming-of-age, which is probably why teenagers everywhere write lots of it.
FALLING HARD: 100 Love Poems by Teenagers
By Edited by Betsy Franco
144 pp. Candlewick Press. $15.99. (Ages 14 and up)
TELL THE WORLD
Teen Poems From WritersCorps
By 116 pp. Harperteen/HarperCollins Publishers. Cloth, $16.99; paper, $8.99.(Ages 12 and up)
MORE THAN FRIENDS
Poems From Him and Her
By Sara Holbrook and Allan Wolf
64 pp. Wordsong. $16.95. (Ages 11 to 14)
april
April is supposed to be the cruelest month, and it does indeed feel cruel in the crunch of tax time, but it's also National Poetry Month (NPM), which makes it one of the best months of the year.
NPM is a monthlong national celebration of poetry established by the Academy of American Poets (http://www.poets.org/). The concept is to widen the attention of individuals and the media to the art of poetry, to living poets, to our complex poetic heritage and to poetry books and journals of wide aesthetic range and concern as well as to increase the visibility and availability of poetry in popular culture while acknowledging and celebrating poetry’s ability to sustain itself in the many places where it is practiced and appreciated.
Beginning April 1, Poets.org sends one new poem to your inbox each day to celebrate National Poetry Month. The poems have been selected from new books published in the spring. To sign up to receive Poem-A-Day emails, visit http://www.poets.org/poemADay.php.
Celebrate the second national Poem In Your Pocket Day on Thursday, April 30! The idea is simple: Select a poem you love, then carry it with you to share with co-workers, family and friends on April 30.
Inspired by the 2009 National Poetry Month Poster design, the Academy of American Poets invites you to capture and share your own ephemeral bits of verse. Write lines from a favorite poem on a sandy beach, assemble twigs on a hillside, or chalk the sidewalk. Take a photo before it disappears and then:
* Post it in the Free Verse group page on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/groups/freeverse/
* Post it on the Academy's Fan Page on Facebook, or
* E-mail it to freeverse@poets.org.
Include the source of your lines in the photo caption. All photos posted by April 15 will be automatically entered in a contest to win the new "Poem in Your Pocket" anthology and a commemorative piece of jewelry.Selected entries will be featured on Poets.org.
Here's one of my favourite poems. Actually, it's an excerpt; it comes from "And The Stars Were Shining" by John Ashbery:
So -- if you want to come with me,
or just pull at my sleeve, let them make that discovery.
Summer won't end in your lap,
nor are the stars more casual than usual.
Peace, quiet, a dictionary -- it was so important,
yet at the end nobody had any time for any of it.
It was as if all of it had never happened,
my shoelaces were untied, and -- am I forgetting anything?
NPM is a monthlong national celebration of poetry established by the Academy of American Poets (http://www.poets.org/). The concept is to widen the attention of individuals and the media to the art of poetry, to living poets, to our complex poetic heritage and to poetry books and journals of wide aesthetic range and concern as well as to increase the visibility and availability of poetry in popular culture while acknowledging and celebrating poetry’s ability to sustain itself in the many places where it is practiced and appreciated.
Beginning April 1, Poets.org sends one new poem to your inbox each day to celebrate National Poetry Month. The poems have been selected from new books published in the spring. To sign up to receive Poem-A-Day emails, visit http://www.poets.org/poemADay.php.
Celebrate the second national Poem In Your Pocket Day on Thursday, April 30! The idea is simple: Select a poem you love, then carry it with you to share with co-workers, family and friends on April 30.
Inspired by the 2009 National Poetry Month Poster design, the Academy of American Poets invites you to capture and share your own ephemeral bits of verse. Write lines from a favorite poem on a sandy beach, assemble twigs on a hillside, or chalk the sidewalk. Take a photo before it disappears and then:
* Post it in the Free Verse group page on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/groups/freeverse/
* Post it on the Academy's Fan Page on Facebook, or
* E-mail it to freeverse@poets.org.
Include the source of your lines in the photo caption. All photos posted by April 15 will be automatically entered in a contest to win the new "Poem in Your Pocket" anthology and a commemorative piece of jewelry.Selected entries will be featured on Poets.org.
Here's one of my favourite poems. Actually, it's an excerpt; it comes from "And The Stars Were Shining" by John Ashbery:
So -- if you want to come with me,
or just pull at my sleeve, let them make that discovery.
Summer won't end in your lap,
nor are the stars more casual than usual.
Peace, quiet, a dictionary -- it was so important,
yet at the end nobody had any time for any of it.
It was as if all of it had never happened,
my shoelaces were untied, and -- am I forgetting anything?
local literary listings
Upcoming Berkshire-area literary events:
BERKSHIRE WRITERS ROOM: 1350 West St., Pittsfield. Phone: (413) 236-2191.
Ongoing workshops:
* Fiction/Creative Non-Fiction meets the first Wednesday of the month from 7 to 9 p.m. in Meville Hall, Room 217, Berkshire Community College, Pittsfield.
* Poetry meets on second Wednesdays from 7 to 9 p.m. at Wild Sage, 333 North St., Pittsfield.
* Writing For Children & Young Adults on second Mondays from 7 to 9 p.m. in Meville Hall, Room 217, Berkshire Community College, Pittsfield.
* The All-Genre Workshop is held on third Thursdays from 7 to 9 p.m. at Mason Public Library, Main Street, Great Barrington.
Workshops are free to members of the Berkshire Writers Room. Interested non-members may attend two workshops before joining. Membership is $20 per year.
THE BOOKLOFT: 332 Stockbridge Road, Barrington Plaza, Route 7, Great Barrington. Phone: 413-528-1521.
Poetry windows and an in-store display will highlight the work of local poets in April.
* Berkshire author Marshall Jon Fisher will read from and sign copies of his new book, "A Terrible Splendor," at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 2.
* Local poets Paul Elisha (WAMC), David Giannini, Sue Melot and David Kherdian will read their work at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 9.
* Gourmet magazine's editor in chief, Ruth Reichl, will return to the Bookloft to read from and sign copies of her new book, "Not Becoming My Mother," at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 23.
* Author Jim Lynch will read from his new book, "Border Songs," at 1 p.m. Sunday, July 12.
THE BOOKSTORE: 11 Housatonic St., Lenox. Phone: (413) 637-3390.
* Cody Walker, Amy Clampitt poetry fellow for 2009, will read from "Shuffle and Breakdown" at 3 p.m. Saturday, April 18.
* Two poets, Berkshire writer Michelle Gillett and Sharon Charde, of Connecticut, will read at 7 p.m. Friday, April 24.
* Poets David Giannini and Gary Metras will read at 3 p.m. Saturday, April 25
* Sit, Knit & Listen: Tannenbaum will read poetry to knitters from co-sponsor Colorful Stitches in the third and final installment of this event at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 29.
* The Gizzi Brothers Ride Again: Lenox poets and songsters Michael, Peter and Tom Gizzi will present an evening of entertainment starting at 5 p.m. Tuesday, May 5. Michael has a new collection of poetry, Tom has a new CD, and Peter will read from new and unpublished work.
CHAPTERS BOOKSTORE: 78 North St., Pittsfield. Phone: (413) 443-2665.
* Great Barrington photographer Steve Donaldson, the author/photographer behind "Barns of the Berkshires," will appear for a reception, slide show and book signing at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 16.
* Anne Easter Smith will read from and sign her historical novel, "The King's Grace," at 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 17.
* Vivan Dorsel will host a reading with poets Aaron M. Beatty, Lisken Van Pelt Dus, Michelle Gillett, Philip Timpane and Irene Willis at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 18.
* The Berkshire Writer's Room will hold a free writing workshop focused on the arts and how they impact writing at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 21.
* Dorsel will host another reading, this time with Karen Chase and Amy Clampitt Fellow Cody Walker, at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 25.
* Earth Day events: An educational, interactive workshop for kids ages 5 and up will go over the basics of Earth Day and things kids can do to help the planet at 3 p.m. Wednesday, April 22. The event will end with a take-home project that is 100% Earth-friendly. At 4 p.m., Amy Zuckerman, author of "2030: A Day in the Life of Tomorrow's Kids," will read from and discuss her book. Free giveaways, raffles, and more.
CHURCH ON THE HILL: 55 Main St., Lenox.
* "Letters to the World: Women, Poetry, and Community": A potluck dinner will begin at 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, April 14, and a reading will be held from 7 to 8:45 p.m. in the chapel. Berkshire writer Rosemary Starace will talk about this international Internet poetry collaboration. Sponsored by the Women's Interfaith Institute of the Berkshires; info: (413) 232-0238, info@womensinterfaithberkshires.org.
INKBERRY: Western Gateway Heritage Park, 115 State Street, Building 1, 2nd floor, in North Adams. Phone: (413) 664-0775. www.inkberry.org
* Community Critique Group: Want feedback on your stories or poems? Looking for an alternative to a class? Share your work with local writers in this welcoming community-based workshop. Members submit their writings and receive feedback on a rotating basis. Feel free to drop in and observe. Open to writers of all levels and styles. This free group is held on first and third Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m.
* Writing the Sacred: Two workshops -- Saturday, April 30, and Tuesday, May 5 -- will allow writers to explore the thin spaces where creative writing and spirituality meet by writing new psalms, or spiritual poems, building on journal writing, poetry and spiritual themes. Inkberry, Williams College and the First Congregational Church of Williamstown will sponsor these workshops, to be held in the church library at 906 Main St. in Williamstown. The April 30 workshop is designed to offer a comfortable writing space for GBLT and queer folk; both are open to everyone. Cost per workshop: $15 for adults, $13.50 for Inkberry members, free for Williams College students. Special rates available for those attending both workshops, as are student rates for non-Williams students.
LENOX LIBRARY: 18 Main St., Lenox. Phone: (413) 637-0197.
* Matt Tannenbaum, owner of The Bookstore in Lenox, will read from his memoir, GBM, 4 p.m. Sunday, April 26, at the Lenox Library.
* Poetry in Motion: National Young Audiences' Artist of the Year, actor David Zucker, will bring to life the best of English-language poetic literature using mime, masks and puppets from 7 to 8 p.m. Saturday, April 18. Featured authors will include A.A. Milne, Lewis Carroll, Langston Hughes and James Whitcomb Riley. This is a free, all-ages program.
MCLA GALLERY 51: MCLA, 375 Church St., North Adams. Phone: (413) 662-5000.
* Sekou Sundiata Evening of Poetry & Spoken Word: An evening dedicated to the life and work of the great poet Sekou Sundiata, featuring award-winning poet and performer Carl Hancock Rux, at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 21. A film screening, including Sundiata's final work, "the 51st (dream) state," which uses music, poetry, images and dance to explore what it means to be an American in the wake of 9/11. The event, sponsored by MCLA's African, Latino, Asian and Native American Association (ALANA), will include performances by local musicians and poets.
STOCKBRIDGE LIBRARY: Main Street, Stockbridge. Phone: (413) 298-5501.
* Peter Bergman, executive director of the Edna St. Vincent Millay Society at Steepletop in Austerlitz, N.Y., will give a reading and discussion of Millay's poems at 4 p.m. Sunday, April 19. This event is free, but space is limited.
WAMC: 90.3 FM.
* Bookstore owner Matt Tannenbaum will participate in the WAMC roundtable with Joe Donohue at 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 28.
BERKSHIRE WRITERS ROOM: 1350 West St., Pittsfield. Phone: (413) 236-2191.
Ongoing workshops:
* Fiction/Creative Non-Fiction meets the first Wednesday of the month from 7 to 9 p.m. in Meville Hall, Room 217, Berkshire Community College, Pittsfield.
* Poetry meets on second Wednesdays from 7 to 9 p.m. at Wild Sage, 333 North St., Pittsfield.
* Writing For Children & Young Adults on second Mondays from 7 to 9 p.m. in Meville Hall, Room 217, Berkshire Community College, Pittsfield.
* The All-Genre Workshop is held on third Thursdays from 7 to 9 p.m. at Mason Public Library, Main Street, Great Barrington.
Workshops are free to members of the Berkshire Writers Room. Interested non-members may attend two workshops before joining. Membership is $20 per year.
THE BOOKLOFT: 332 Stockbridge Road, Barrington Plaza, Route 7, Great Barrington. Phone: 413-528-1521.
Poetry windows and an in-store display will highlight the work of local poets in April.
* Berkshire author Marshall Jon Fisher will read from and sign copies of his new book, "A Terrible Splendor," at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 2.
* Local poets Paul Elisha (WAMC), David Giannini, Sue Melot and David Kherdian will read their work at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 9.
* Gourmet magazine's editor in chief, Ruth Reichl, will return to the Bookloft to read from and sign copies of her new book, "Not Becoming My Mother," at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 23.
* Author Jim Lynch will read from his new book, "Border Songs," at 1 p.m. Sunday, July 12.
THE BOOKSTORE: 11 Housatonic St., Lenox. Phone: (413) 637-3390.
* Cody Walker, Amy Clampitt poetry fellow for 2009, will read from "Shuffle and Breakdown" at 3 p.m. Saturday, April 18.
* Two poets, Berkshire writer Michelle Gillett and Sharon Charde, of Connecticut, will read at 7 p.m. Friday, April 24.
* Poets David Giannini and Gary Metras will read at 3 p.m. Saturday, April 25
* Sit, Knit & Listen: Tannenbaum will read poetry to knitters from co-sponsor Colorful Stitches in the third and final installment of this event at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 29.
* The Gizzi Brothers Ride Again: Lenox poets and songsters Michael, Peter and Tom Gizzi will present an evening of entertainment starting at 5 p.m. Tuesday, May 5. Michael has a new collection of poetry, Tom has a new CD, and Peter will read from new and unpublished work.
CHAPTERS BOOKSTORE: 78 North St., Pittsfield. Phone: (413) 443-2665.
* Great Barrington photographer Steve Donaldson, the author/photographer behind "Barns of the Berkshires," will appear for a reception, slide show and book signing at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 16.
* Anne Easter Smith will read from and sign her historical novel, "The King's Grace," at 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 17.
* Vivan Dorsel will host a reading with poets Aaron M. Beatty, Lisken Van Pelt Dus, Michelle Gillett, Philip Timpane and Irene Willis at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 18.
* The Berkshire Writer's Room will hold a free writing workshop focused on the arts and how they impact writing at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 21.
* Dorsel will host another reading, this time with Karen Chase and Amy Clampitt Fellow Cody Walker, at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 25.
* Earth Day events: An educational, interactive workshop for kids ages 5 and up will go over the basics of Earth Day and things kids can do to help the planet at 3 p.m. Wednesday, April 22. The event will end with a take-home project that is 100% Earth-friendly. At 4 p.m., Amy Zuckerman, author of "2030: A Day in the Life of Tomorrow's Kids," will read from and discuss her book. Free giveaways, raffles, and more.
CHURCH ON THE HILL: 55 Main St., Lenox.
* "Letters to the World: Women, Poetry, and Community": A potluck dinner will begin at 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, April 14, and a reading will be held from 7 to 8:45 p.m. in the chapel. Berkshire writer Rosemary Starace will talk about this international Internet poetry collaboration. Sponsored by the Women's Interfaith Institute of the Berkshires; info: (413) 232-0238, info@womensinterfaithberkshires.org.
INKBERRY: Western Gateway Heritage Park, 115 State Street, Building 1, 2nd floor, in North Adams. Phone: (413) 664-0775. www.inkberry.org
* Community Critique Group: Want feedback on your stories or poems? Looking for an alternative to a class? Share your work with local writers in this welcoming community-based workshop. Members submit their writings and receive feedback on a rotating basis. Feel free to drop in and observe. Open to writers of all levels and styles. This free group is held on first and third Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m.
* Writing the Sacred: Two workshops -- Saturday, April 30, and Tuesday, May 5 -- will allow writers to explore the thin spaces where creative writing and spirituality meet by writing new psalms, or spiritual poems, building on journal writing, poetry and spiritual themes. Inkberry, Williams College and the First Congregational Church of Williamstown will sponsor these workshops, to be held in the church library at 906 Main St. in Williamstown. The April 30 workshop is designed to offer a comfortable writing space for GBLT and queer folk; both are open to everyone. Cost per workshop: $15 for adults, $13.50 for Inkberry members, free for Williams College students. Special rates available for those attending both workshops, as are student rates for non-Williams students.
LENOX LIBRARY: 18 Main St., Lenox. Phone: (413) 637-0197.
* Matt Tannenbaum, owner of The Bookstore in Lenox, will read from his memoir, GBM, 4 p.m. Sunday, April 26, at the Lenox Library.
* Poetry in Motion: National Young Audiences' Artist of the Year, actor David Zucker, will bring to life the best of English-language poetic literature using mime, masks and puppets from 7 to 8 p.m. Saturday, April 18. Featured authors will include A.A. Milne, Lewis Carroll, Langston Hughes and James Whitcomb Riley. This is a free, all-ages program.
MCLA GALLERY 51: MCLA, 375 Church St., North Adams. Phone: (413) 662-5000.
* Sekou Sundiata Evening of Poetry & Spoken Word: An evening dedicated to the life and work of the great poet Sekou Sundiata, featuring award-winning poet and performer Carl Hancock Rux, at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 21. A film screening, including Sundiata's final work, "the 51st (dream) state," which uses music, poetry, images and dance to explore what it means to be an American in the wake of 9/11. The event, sponsored by MCLA's African, Latino, Asian and Native American Association (ALANA), will include performances by local musicians and poets.
STOCKBRIDGE LIBRARY: Main Street, Stockbridge. Phone: (413) 298-5501.
* Peter Bergman, executive director of the Edna St. Vincent Millay Society at Steepletop in Austerlitz, N.Y., will give a reading and discussion of Millay's poems at 4 p.m. Sunday, April 19. This event is free, but space is limited.
WAMC: 90.3 FM.
* Bookstore owner Matt Tannenbaum will participate in the WAMC roundtable with Joe Donohue at 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 28.
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