Read into Recently Published Poetry
The Sobbing School by Joshua Bennet
Poet Joshua Bennett has won numerous prizes and fellowships, but his first full-length collection of poetry was published just this past year. Drawing on slices of life as much as meditations on history, politics, pop-culture, and literary tradition, it weaves engaging portraits of complex individuals and demanding moments in down-to-earth yet powerful language. Charged with the social tensions of our time, and suffused with Bennett’s experience as an African-American man in modern day America, this book not only reads beautifully but seems filled with relevance and insight. Check-it out yourself, and meanwhile read some poetry that ended up in the collection as well as an interview with Bennett from the literary journal The Kenyon Review, also read Kinsfolk, an online journal of contemporary black writing founded and edited by Bennett.
Further reading: The Sobbing School was published as part of the National Poetry Series, a program designed to award and promote contemporary poetry. Learn more about the series at their website, and follow this link to find more National Poetry Series books in our collection, including The broken word: poems by Marcus Cafagna.
See Cafagna read at the Schweitzer Brentwood Branch at 3 p.m. on Sunday, April 2nd. **
The After Party: Poems by Jana Prikryl
Prikryl has made a name for herself over the years as a poet, critic, and editor. The After Party is her first book, but hopefully not her last. It is lush with a flair for words that never fails to be as to the point as it is playful, and craftily catches the motion of life in quick revolutions of imagery and inspection. Prikryl draws from numberless wells of inspiration, blending mentions of tweets and references to Benedict Cumberbatch seamlessly with thorough and touching examinations of basic human experiences like embarrassment and seduction. It makes for a set of poems that will keep a reader surprised but always connected.
Read a poem from the collection at the London Review of Books, and learn more about Prikryl and her craft in her interview with the Paris Review.
Collected Poems: 1974-2014 by Rita Dove
In 1987, Rita Dove won a Pulitzer Prize for her poetry, from 1993 to 1995 she served as U.S. Poet Laureate, and in 2011 she was awarded a National Medal of Arts by President Obama. This collection serves as a testament to her career thus far, and as a shining example of the complex mix of traditional and cutting edge poetics of the late 20th century. Dove's poems speak to the power and of the experience of her life, as much they speak of the history that surrounds her, she draws from day-to-day struggles and revelations in clear language shot through with careful turns of phrase and playful language.
Hear Dove reading her poems here as a part of Harvard’s Poetry Room Listening Booth project.
At The Foundling Hospital by Robert Pinsky
Robert Pinsky also had a stint as U.S. Poet Laureate, from 1997 to 2000. As a poet he has devoted himself to advocating for and promoting appreciation of the medium, becoming a face for contemporary American poetry along the way. His classic style calls forth deep traditions of poetry in his contemplation of history, language, and spirituality. This latest book is a wonderful addition to his bibliography, and a great example of his time tested style, connecting moments of his personal life with humanity as a whole and spanning that distance with the power of language crafted and bent into intimate lyrical streams.
Dig deeper by reading Pinsky's book Singing School, a concise look at reading, writing, and appreciating poetry.
You can keep up with the latest trends in contemporary poetry and fiction at the Library's website. Read through some of the literary journals available in our database Masterfile Premier*, including:
- American Poetry Review*... read my favorite from the latest issue: Four by Sarah Blake*
- Southern Review*... check out a great piece of short fiction from bestseller James Lee Burke*
- Ploughshares*... read late breaking new poetry like Tarot Reading by Kate Glavin*
** Hear and meet local poets at the Sunday Poet's Series at the Schweitzer Brentwood branch library. All readings are at 3 p.m.
- March 5th
- April 2nd
- May 7th
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