Linda Hogan — Song for the Turtles of the Gulf
In a poem called a “Song,” Linda Hogan crafts a song for turtles and other creatures killed through oil spills in the gulf. At once a praise song for the beauty of the sea, the earth, and its animals,...
26 Nov 202115min
Lory Bedikian — On the Way to Oshagan
The exile’s return to the motherland is the theme around which Lory Bedikian’s poem “On the Way to Oshagan” circles. She, a proud Armenian, stops by a roadside stall on a trip to her home country; and...
22 Nov 202117min
Nico Amador — Flower Wars
Telling some of the story of the Flower Wars of the Aztec era, Nico Amador’s poem pits wars against creation. In a poem that begins by recalling creation myths from multiple cultures, he then poses qu...
19 Nov 202112min
Darrel Alejandro Holnes — Amending Wall
In a poem that directly addresses Robert Frost’s “Mending Wall,” Darrel Alejandro Holnes asks questions: who gets to build walls, or guard borders?. Do good fences really make good neighbors? Taking a...
15 Nov 202117min
Elizabeth Bishop — Sestina
This sestina poem considers a scene from Elizabeth Bishop’s own childhood through the sounds of six repeating words: house, grandmother, child, stove, almanac, tears. These six words repeat — in diffe...
12 Nov 202115min
Major Jackson — Blunts
Some friends gather and smoke at a doorway in a city. There’s Malik, and Johnny Cash, and Lefty, and Jësus. And the poet, Major Jackson. They’ve known each other their whole lives, and they wonder who...
8 Nov 202116min
Andrés Cerpa — Seasonal without Spring: Autumn
Andrés Cerpa recollects how his father’s early dementia was an increasing influence on his early years. As he grew, his father diminished. The burden of this was heavy on him — he stayed awake listeni...
5 Nov 202116min
Kaveh Akbar — How Prayer Works
A narrative prose poem about two brothers — one on a visit home from college — who are turning to face east in their small shared room. With seven years between them, one is a young man and the other,...
1 Nov 202115min
