Against climate defeatism. And while we’re on the subject, this story of the fight for fossil fuel divestment at Harvard reminds me how divestment became a lever in the fight against South African apartheid. Who in 2014 sustains a level of... Read More
Salman Rushdie opens his NY Times tribute to Gabriel Garcia Marquez with the statement Gabo lives. Alongside the kerfuffle between Netanyahu and the newly united PLO-Hamas Palestinian leadership, Mahmoud Abbas this week made a statement in sympathy with survivors of... Read More
“I want to stand as close to the edge as I can without going over. Out on the edge you see all kinds of things you can’t see from the center.” Kurt Vonnegut’s quote heralds the 10th annual PEN World... Read More
Susana H. Case‘s new book 4 Rms w Vu is out from Mayapple Press, another in Case’s line of sharply observed poetry collections that serve up her at times scathing insights with a playful sense of humor. An excellent recipe for a... Read More
If you’re anywhere near D.C. this coming weekend, you need to get over to the Human Rights Campaign Equality Forum, headquarters for Split This Rock’s festival of socially engaged writing. Featured poets include Franny Choi, Eduardo C. Corral, Joy Harjo,... Read More
Coming into Language is Jimmy Santiago Baca’s moving essay on self-created literacy, the emergence from struggle of a writer’s passion and voice, posted to PEN American Center. The Reading Brain in the Digital Age: The Science of Paper versus Screens,... Read More
Songbirds and lilac bushes are of the opinion spring is imminent on the north coast. The largest marketplace for guns is, according to the NY Times, Facebook. Hackaday Projects is showing taser-proof clothing. Wayne Dyer says you should do what comes... Read More
Dear Reader, Welcome to Curmudgeon’s Corner. From time to time I will post here the missives of fellow poet and all-around-opiner, Curmudgeon. Curmudgeon has no small opinions, and believes life is too short to curb one’s enthusiasm. Please don’t write... Read More
Booth 624 book signings for this year’s AWP book fair: Thursday 1 p.m., Mary Stone Dockery, Blink Finch; 2 p.m., Leah Umansky, Don Dreams and I Dream. Friday, 11 a.m., Kelly Fordon, Tell Me When it Starts to Hurt; and... Read More