You can find poetry anywhere, even in ads on the subway.
Check out Subway Cento for more subway ad poems.
My other favorite subway-related-poetry thing is Poems on the Underground.
(image: Jack Cheng)(via Design Mom)
Category: Poetry
Animated Poetry
Another grey, drizzly day. Perfect time for a little humor and poetry, care of Billy Collins and his TED talk. Here, Collins reads his poems with some animated accompaniment. The videos are really lovely:
(H/T Book Riot)
Friday Fifteen
Happy Friday everyone! Feeling even better because it’s a long weekend. Onto the Friday Fifteen, in which I review five books in fifteen words or less.
1. The Premier Book of Major Poets: an Anthology ed. by Anita Dore
All the heavy-hitters, arranged by theme. Walt gave me his copy early in our relationship.
2. How to Eat: The Pleasures and Principles of Good Food by Nigella Lawson
More of a conversation with a chef than a standard cookbook. Really enjoy her ideas, though.
3. The Goldsmith’s Daughter by Tanya Landman
Wish I had this when I was 12 and reading about the Aztecs in class.
4. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling
Love how the series circled back to this. But JK, seriously, why the spiders? Terrifying!
5. The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
A Christmas favorite, plus Allsburg’s beautiful art.
The Art of Reading Aloud
What’s better than reading poetry? Hearing celebrities read poetry to you.
Check out Speak, Celebrity’s collection of poems read by actors like Meryl Streep, Tom Hiddleston, and Samuel L. Jackson. If anything, it’s a reminder that poems should be read aloud. The depths these readers bring to very familiar poems is fantastic.
(H/T Book Riot)
Try to Praise the Mutilated World
I find it strange to talk about September 11th because, unlike so many people in New York or Washington or Pennsylvania, my life wasn’t dramatically affected that day. Whenever this day comes up, or the anniversary of any other tragic event, I turn to this poem by Adam Zagajewski:
Try to praise the mutilated world.
Remember June’s long days,
and wild strawberries, drops of wine, the dew.
The nettles that methodically overgrow
the abandoned homesteads of exiles.
You must praise the mutilated world.
You watched the stylish yachts and ships;
one of them had a long trip ahead of it,
while salty oblivion awaited others.
You’ve seen the refugees heading nowhere,
you’ve heard the executioners sing joyfully.
You should praise the mutilated world.
Remember the moments when we were together
in a white room and the curtain fluttered.
Return in thought to the concert where music flared.
You gathered acorns in the park in autumn
and leaves eddied over the earth’s scars.
Praise the mutilated world
and the gray feather a thrush lost,
and the gentle light that strays and vanishes
and returns.—Adam Zagajewski
(Translated, from the Polish, by Clare Cavanagh.)
It was published in the September 42, 2001 issue of The New Yorker. Click through for more poetry in response to that day.
Friday Fifteen
Another Friday, another Friday Fifteen! Check out the latest in fifteen-word book reviews.
1. Another Bullshit Night in Suck City by Nick Flynn
Memoir about family and homelessness in Massachusetts. Don’t remember many details, but the vibe sticks.
2. American Girls Cookbook: A Peek at Dining in the Past With Meals You Can Cook Today by American Girl Library, Jeanne Thieme
Never made anything, but loved reading the recipes and history. Might try Kirsten’s bread someday.
3. Pat the Bunny by Dorothy Kunhardt
The cutest form of peer pressure.
4. The Incredible Clay Book by Sherri Haab and Laura Torres
I made so many clay peapods with this.
5. Sailing Alone Around the Room: New and Selected Poems by Billy Collins
I don’t care if it’s not pushing boundaries; Billy Collins has some lovely poems.
Summer and the Spoken Word
While I’m still riding the wave of a great summer weekend, here’s an awesome performance by poet Sarah Kay:
Lovely writing with great bits of humor throughout. Kay’s piece also reminds me of how important rhythm is in writing, even if you’re not performing spoken word poetry.
(via swissmiss)
To Boldly Go Where No Poem Has Gone Before
Klingon poetry readings get out of hand very quickly.
Poetic form or Star Trek villain at McSweeney’s.
Way harder than I assumed it would be. I mean, Luc Bat? I totally saw that episode!
Once you take the quiz, you could write a poem in a specific poetic form about one of the Star Trek villains.
Friday Fifteen
Hey Friday! Here’s the best in this week’s fifteen-word reviews:
1. Buffy The Vampire Slayer: The Script Book, Season One, Volume 1 by Various Authors
Let’s talk about how much I love Buffy. Ideal middle school TV watching.
2. Nine Stories by J.D. Salinger
Excellent stories, although in general I prefer Salinger’s longer works.
3. Piping Down the Valleys Wild ed. Nancy Larrick
Read in fifth grade, my first real encounter with poetry. Lovely collection for kids.
4. The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
Always kind of hoped the tree would whack the boy with one of its branches.
5. Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson
A courtroom drama centered on race. Expected more To Kill a Mockingbird than I got.
Links Galore
Ending the week with a few fun links:
- A short mystery by Diana Renn, author of the upcoming Tokyo Heist. Thrills! Chills!
- Apparently T.S. Eliot isn’t just big inspiration for writers: musicians love him too.
- Reading the schedule for this year’s Children’s Literature Association Conference really makes me wish I could attend.
- 10 myths about being a writer–and 10 things that make up for the myths.
- Tracking science fiction trends.