Dec 11 This Palestinian poem on Jerusalem is finding new life By Jennifer Hijazi The work of Mahmoud Darwish -- who died in 2008 and is widely considered the preeminent modern Palestinian poet -- has found new resonance since President Donald Trump’s announcement that the U.S. will move its embassy to Jerusalem, officially recognizing… Continue reading
Dec 04 His wife worked at Sandy Hook. Now this poet is helping start a conversation about gun violence By Alison Thoet The shooting “changed our lives that day, and we became activists.” In a new collection, 54 poems address gun violence in America. Continue reading
Nov 28 This record label is bringing live poetry back to vinyl By Elizabeth Flock Jeff Alessandrelli said the label is looking to bring the same independent sensibility as Octopus to its releases, and plans to release two to three records per year. Continue reading
Nov 20 In poet John Keats’ letters, a man full of life just before he died By Alison Thoet Romantic poet John Keats is best known for his odes, epics and sonnets. But in his short lifetime he also wrote dozens of letters to siblings and friends, which are now surfacing together online for the first time, 200 years… Continue reading
Nov 06 Bukowski’s poems were mangled by editors after his death. Now you can read his originals By Elizabeth Flock A new book faithfully reproduces Bukowski's poems as he actually wrote them, before they were revised with a heavy hand. Continue reading
Oct 23 ‘Oh, they’re on the pills. We don’t really see them anymore.’ By Mary Jo Brooks Author William Brewer didn’t want to write a book about the drug crisis decimating his state, but it was a topic he couldn’t avoid. Watching the people around him succumb to addiction, he set out to capture the crisis in… Continue reading
Oct 16 This poem shows what sexual abuse looks like By Elizabeth Flock “From One / who says, ‘Don’t cry. You’ll like it after a while,’” she writes. “And Two who tells you thank you / after the fact and can’t look at your face.”… Continue reading
Sep 29 Watch 7:09 Navigating Seattle’s ever-evolving streets through poetry By PBS News Hour How do you capture Seattle’s complications, quirks and ever-changing population? A new digital project is mapping out the evolving city by collecting poems that tell unique stories, from growing up in an affluent neighborhood to memories of homelessness and cold… Continue watching
Sep 25 How the irreverent poetry of the ’60s helped spawn punk music By Elizabeth Flock A new book traces how innovators of punk music interacted with New York School poets such as Ted Berrigan and Anne Waldman. Continue reading
Sep 18 Why U.S. Virgin Islanders feel there’s no place they belong By Elizabeth Flock Hurricane Irma devastated the U.S. Virgin Islands, leveling homes, knocking out power, and turning the landscape into a “battered wasteland” where some say media coverage was minimal and help was late to arrive. Now, the islands are under… Continue reading