May 26, 2020 . In Eliot Schain’s latest collection, The Distant Sound (Sixteen Rivers Press 2020), we enter a type of concert where the poet conducts his many memories. From a truck stop men’s room to the Chez Paree, from Gallery 41 of the Uffizi Museum to a Mexican town, each memory brings a newContinue reading “Eliot Schain”
Author Archives: Katherine Hastings
Maureen O’Connor
May 14, 2020 “I’m nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too?” This quote by Emily Dickinson topped the short bio Maureen O’Connor provided me for this posting. Why is she “nobody?” Well, she just isn’t. There are so many good poets in the world whose work rarely or never sees the light of day.Continue reading “Maureen O’Connor”
Kathleen Winter
April 30, 2020 I’ve always enjoyed the poetry of Kathleen Winter, author of three collections. You can get a taste of her tremendous wit and daring just by looking at the book titles: Nostalgia for the Criminal Past (Elixir Press, 2012); I will not kick my friends (Elixir Press, 2018) and, most recently Transformer (TheContinue reading “Kathleen Winter”
Joseph Zaccardi
April 16, 2020 I’m pleased to introduce a few poems by Joseph Zaccardi today. The author of five collections of poetry, including his recently published The Weight of Bodily Touches (Kelsay Books), Zaccardi served as Marin County, CA’s poet laureate from 2013 to 2015. During his tenure he edited and published the anthology Changing HarmContinue reading “Joseph Zaccardi”
Thomas Centolella
April 6, 2020 One of the many poets I had the privilege of hearing read at the WordTemple Poetry Series was San Francisco poet Thomas Centolella. I remember sitting in the front row thinking “He’s one of the magicians.” What did I mean by that? He wasn’t pulling a rabbit out of a hat orContinue reading “Thomas Centolella”
Olga Karman
March 27, 2020 Olga Karman was born in Havana, Cuba and lived there until she was twenty years and two months old. Her teenage years coincided with Fidel Castro’s armed struggle and eventual rise to power. “How exciting it was listening to Radio Rebelde every night over our short wave radio. I was in theContinue reading “Olga Karman”
Ulalume Gonzàlez de Leòn in Translation
March 19, 2020 “Without translation, I would be limited to the borders of my own country. The translator is my most important ally. He introduces me to the world.” — Italo Calvino The translation of poetry from one language to another is a daunting, some would say impossible, task. Some words in one language mayContinue reading “Ulalume Gonzàlez de Leòn in Translation”
Patrick Cahill
March 11, 2020 Continuing with our mission of highlighting a few poets who have new books that were presented to a diminished audience at AWP this year due to the Coronavirus, we move on to San Francisco poet Patrick Cahill. To have Cahill’s poems available to us in his new collection The Machinery of SleepContinue reading “Patrick Cahill”
Four Poets for March beginning with Jane Hirshfield
March 4, 2020 As you all know by now, many of the poets and publishers who were scheduled to appear at the AWP conference in San Antonio this week have had to cancel due to concerns about the Coronavirus. It’s possible that by the time you read this post, the entire conference may be shutContinue reading “Four Poets for March beginning with Jane Hirshfield”
Irene Sipos
February 19, 2020 One of the first poets I heard read in Buffalo was Irene Sipos. She was celebrating the release of her collection Stones (NFB Publishing, 2018) at one of my favorite bookstores, Talking Leaves on Elmwood Avenue. Between the poems she was reading and the way she presented them, the experience was aContinue reading “Irene Sipos”
