Poetry Jul 11 How young writers are leading a poetry comeback Twenty-eight million American adults read poetry this year -- the highest percentage of poetry readership in more than 15 years. By Jennifer Hijazi
Poetry Jan 01 This New Year’s poem honors ‘the wrong roads we’ve taken’ Jimmy Santiago Baca wrote the collection, “Winter Poems Along the Rio Grande” in 2004 after living on the banks of that river. Every morning, he ran through snow, rain and mud in a ritual that he called a spiritual experience. By Jennifer Hijazi
Poetry Oct 23 Watch 5:11 Why this poet couldn’t avoid writing about the opioid crisis The opioid crisis has plagued poet William Brewer’s hometown in West Virginia. His vivid poems tell the story of the opioid epidemic from different voices and depict the sense of bewilderment people find themselves in as addiction creeps into their… By PBS NewsHour
Poetry Sep 29 Mapping Seattle, poem by poem Seattle's "Poetic Grid" captures the rapidly changing city by asking people to write about locations that have meaning to them. By Lorna Baldwin
Jul 24 This poet’s obsession with death led her to write about how to live By Elizabeth Flock Nicole Sealey's new poetry collection asks us if, like the Greek figure of Sisyphus, we can find contentment even when life is difficult and absurd… Continue reading
Jul 17 The rage and rebellion of the Detroit riots, captured in one poem By Elizabeth Flock Fifty years ago this month, a protest in Detroit turned into a riot, which turned into five days of violence that left dozens dead, thousands arrested and a city engulfed in flames. The poem "They Feed They Lion" chronicles the… Continue reading
Jun 23 4 poets you need to read, from new poet laureate Tracy K. Smith By Elizabeth Flock Last week, the Library of Congress selected Tracy K. Smith as the new U.S. Poet Laureate. Here, Smith shares the poetry she recommends reading right now. Continue reading
Mar 13 Watch poet Susan Howe read this Dickinson poem on life and death By Elizabeth Flock Leading contemporary poet and Dickinson scholar Susan Howe breaks down "There's a certain Slant of light," one of Emily Dickinson's most-beloved poems. Continue reading
Jan 16 As ‘writers resist’ Trump, an interview with a poet in protest By Elizabeth Flock On Sunday, writers and artists rallied across the country in defense of freedom of speech and to protest the political discourse of President-elect Donald Trump. The Writers Resist events took place in Tuscaloosa, Fresno, Helena Denver, Chicago, Baltimore,and Washington D.C.,… Continue reading