From the category archives:

Fearless Poetry Exploration Reading Challenge

The Penguin Anthology of 20th Century American Poetry edited by Rita Dove

April 5, 2012

The Penguin Anthology of 20th Century American Poetry edited by Rita Dove (listen to her NPR interview, where she talks about the anthology and provides advice for young poets) collects a few poems from some of the great poets at the the height of their craft between 1900 and 2000, and while Dove notes that [...]

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The Auroras by David St. John

April 4, 2012

The Auroras by David St. John is broken into three distinct sections:  Gypsy Davy, In the High Country, and The Auroras.  In this triptych of poems, “In the High Country” is flanked by the smaller sections “Gypsy Davy” and “The Auroras” but what ties the sections together is not a cohesive story as in Emma [...]

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LGBT Poetry

February 28, 2012

Today’s monthly poetry event is sponsored by Kelly at The Written World, so go over there and link up your poetry post for February! After reading and reviewing Resilience edited by Eric Nguyen last week, I started thinking about all the poetry I’ve read and how universal it is.  I really pay little to no [...]

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Resilience Edited by Eric Nguyen

February 24, 2012

Resilience edited by Eric Nguyen is a collection of essays, poems, stories, and advice for young gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, and transgender teens and young adults, but there are lessons in these stories for everyone, including those that bully, talk down to, or otherwise belittle people.  The world would be a much better place if we [...]

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Reason to Drool Over Poetry

January 31, 2012

I’ve read a number of posts over the years from fellow bloggers about their love/lust of authors from the Book Lady‘s Panty Throwing to bloggers like Hey Lady! Whatcha Readin?‘s spotlights on the books she’s drooling over.  I know that we all drool over actors and various book series and more, but when it comes [...]

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2011 Reading Challenge Results and More

December 30, 2011

I knew at the end of last year that I had signed up for too many reading challenges, especially since the little one was going to be born early on in the new year (2011), but I signed up for a ton anyway. For those who are interested, I’m going to share with you some [...]

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Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea by Nikki Giovanni

December 23, 2011

Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea by Nikki Giovanni hums with the rhythm of spoken word poetry and the jazz of human experience.  Each poem carries with it an essence that reflects the Black experience from the capture and transportation of slaves and what that should teach us about how to treat people to the lessons we [...]

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2012 Challenges

December 16, 2011

I’m still working on finishing up my 2011 challenges, which I absolutely went overboard on.  But in the meantime, while I’m preparing for the holiday festivities and finishing up challenges and making the Best of list, I wanted to get out there with two challenges I will definitely be participating in. Ok, yes, they are [...]

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Soul Clothes by Regina D. Jemison

November 25, 2011

Soul Clothes by Regina D. Jemison is slim collection of poems that explore the Black experience from a spiritual perspective.  She has quite a bit to say about the struggles Black men have with confidence, kicking habits, staying with their women, but she also has a lot to say about her own experiences and even [...]

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Beyond the Scent of Sorrow by Sweta Srivastava Vikram

November 22, 2011

Beyond the Scent of Sorrow by Sweta Srivastava Vikram is a small collection of poems that draw parallels between nature and women.  Reminiscent of Ecofeminism, a political and social combination of feminism and deep ecology that draws parallels between women and nature and calls attention to the misuse of both by patriarchy, Vikram develops a [...]

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A Wreath of Down and Drops of Blood by Allen Braden

November 16, 2011

A Wreath of Down and Drops of Blood by Allen Braden is a slim collection of poems, published as part of the Virginia Quarterly Review Poetry Series, and is steeped in bird imagery and rural life.  His images are at once beautiful and raw, bringing with it the full force of nature’s unbridled beauty and [...]

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The Conference of the Birds by Peter Sis

November 9, 2011

The Conference of the Birds by Peter Sis, an acclaimed children’s author and illustrator, has taken his skills to a 12th century Sufi epic poem of the same name written by Farid ud-Din Attar, who was not only a poet but a mystic.  Often these types of poems have a hidden spiritual meaning, and Sis [...]

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