April at Poets House

Friday, April 16, 7:00pm

Texts to Argue Through: 
A Conversation with John D'Agata, 
Thalia Field & Jena Osman
Essayist John D'Agata, cross-genre writer Thalia Field and experimental poet Jena Osman trace how research-based projects can evolve into book-length lyric essays and serial poems.
$10, $7 for students and seniors, free to Poets House Members

Poetry for Children
Saturday, April 17, 11:00am–3:00pm

Grand Opening of the Constance Laibe Hays Children's Room at Poets House
(Part of Ecopoetic Futures, a series of events that examine poetry and the environment)
Join us for a celebration of our new children's room! Festivities begin at 11:00am with U.S. Children's Poet Laureate Mary Ann Hoberman and teacher Linda Winston sharing poems from their anthology, The Tree That Time Built: A Celebration of Nature, Science, and Imagination. The revelry continues with giveaways, creative writing exercises and other surprises.
Admission free

Also in April
Wednesday, April 21, 12:30pm

Nordic Voices: A Reading & Conversation 
with Jörgen Gassilewski, Anna Hallberg 
& Jonas J. Magnusson
Young Swedish poets Jörgen Gassilewski and Anna Hallberg read their work and talk with conceptual artist and translator Jonas J. Magnusson.
Admission free

Wednesday, April 21, 7:00pm

A Civil Feast of Jazz & Poetry 
with Poet Afaa Michael Weaver & Jazz Musicians Harold Anderson, Bill Lowe & Stan Strickland
Poet Afaa Michael Weaver and acclaimed musicians perform jazz pieces and recitals of Weaver's poems, followed by conversation about music and verse.
$10, $7 for students and seniors, free to Poets House Members

Thursday, April 22, 7:00pm

The Opening of the Field: A Conversation 
with Nalini Nadkarni & Leonard Schwartz
(Part of Ecopoetic Futures, a series of events that examine poetry and the environment)
Rainforest ecologist Nalini Nadkarni and poet Leonard Schwartz examine how poetic and scientific understandings of nature might be combined to inspire ecological stewardship.
$10, $7 for students and seniors, free to Poets House Members
Tuesday, April 27, 7:00pm
The Whole Island: Six Decades of Cuban Poetry 
with Maria Isabel Alfonso, Lourdes Gil, 
James Irby, Mark Weiss & Christopher Winks
On the occasion of the publication of The Whole Island: Six Decades of Cuban Poetry, editor Mark Weiss, contributors and translators explore major trends in Cuban poetry, both on and off the island.
$10, $7 for students and seniors, free to Poets House Members

Thursday, April 29, 7:00pm

Nox: From Box to Book with Anne Carson & Currie
With artistic collaborator Currie, poet Anne Carson discusses and reads from Nox, her illustrated "book in a box" that elegizes the loss of her brother with photos, collages, sketches and poetry written through the lens of her translation of Catullus.
$10, $7 for students and seniors, free to Poets House Members

All programs take place at Poets House, 10 River Terrace (at Murray St) in Lower Manhattan, unless otherwise noted. For more information, call (212) 431-7920 or visit www.poetshouse.org.
Poets House Hours
Poets House Reading Room 
& The Reed Foundation Library
Tuesday–Friday, 11:00am–7:00pm
Saturday, 11:00am–6:00pm
The Constance Laibe Hays 
Children's Room at Poets House
Through Saturday, April 17: 
Saturday, 11:00am–5:00pm
Starting Thursday, April 22: 
Tiny Poets Time (for Toddlers): Thursday, 10:00am
Open hours: Thursday & Friday, 12:00–5:00pm, Saturday, 11:00am–5:00pm

All correspondence should be addressed to:
Poets House
10 River Terrace
New York, NY 10282
For more information, 
call (212) 431-7920.
Spring 2010 Classes 
at Poets House
Please visit our website for details on these classes and for other upcoming spring programs.
• Master Classes
• Marie Howe – May 22–23
• Robert Hass – May 30
• Quincy Troupe – June 5–6
• Ecopoetic Futures: Open-Enrollment Seminars & Workshops on Poetry & the Environment
• The Opening of the Field with Leonard Schwartz & Nalini Nadkarni – April 23–24
• Ecopoetics After Copenhagen with Jonathan Skinner – May 12, 14, 15
• An Ethics Occurs at the Edge of What We Know with Brenda Hillman – May 2

Directions
The new Poets House is located at
10 River Terrace at the corner of Murray Street in Lower Manhattan's Battery Park City.
Take the 1, 2, 3, A or C subway to Chambers Street. Walk west on Chambers Street (past West Street) all the way to River Terrace. Turn left and walk two blocks south to 10 River Terrace at Murray Street. The M22 bus runs along Chambers between North End Ave and the Lower East Side. The M20 bus travels from the Upper West Side and the southern tip of Battery Park City to North End Ave. The Downtown Connection, a free Lower Manhattan shuttle bus, travels to North End Ave from South Street Seaport and from Broadway along Murray Street; for more information, visit: www.downtownny.com
Find Out What's Happening At Poets House Now!

Poets House invites you to follow us on Twitter and Facebook. We'll be posting updates about upcoming events, photos of our new home in Battery Park City and more.
Become a Poets House Member
To become a Poets House Member or to give the gift of Membership to a family member or friend, visit www.poetshouse.org/join.htm. We look forward to welcoming you as a new member of our growing community of writers, readers, teachers, parents and poetry-lovers from around the nation and worldwide.
If you would like more information about the Capital Campaign for Poets House and how you can participate, please contact Krista Manrique at krista@poetshouse.org or (212) 431-7920, ext. 2830.

| 10 River Terrace, New York, NY 10282 | | (212) 431-7920
www.poetshouse.org


 

Keeping Up With Things

All publishers big and small are shifting and resizing, independent stores are closing in some places, like here in Maine, unfortunately. We can only hope for things to get better for everyone everywhere across the States. Things have been quiet for the most part here at Deerbrook, as far as the weather goes, that is welcome, and one never knows whether to speak of it or not, at least until next week. It helps to focus on the work of art and literature when we don't have to shovel and get the tractor out to move mounds of snow, even after our dependable plow guy.

There are a number of books in the works as prospective new titles by authors from around the region from places like Massachusetts, New York, New Hampshire, and Maine. We are trying to develop and keep up with the demands of marketing, and the wonderful opportunity for us being part of Small Press Distribution and all the good work they are doing. SPD will offer/display some titles at the AWP Conference in Denver this year, staring today. SPD has lots of interesting information on there web site and blog about books and literature.

We are always grateful to stores that keep ordering our titles, and the authors that keep getting out there reading and giving Deerbrook some exposure. And it is nice to see we have a few followers here, which makes it seem worth while. I am sorry if there isn't more news to spread but there are so many directions I personally get pulled in it can be a challenge to keep up with general news. Hopefully goals will be met and a few more collections of poetry will be coming out in the not to distant future. One new thing is that now we have a link that sends anyone typing in this address; deerbrookeditions.com directly to the web page. The hope is to have a dedicated site for Deerbrook Editions books allowing sales online, or perhaps sales directly from the existing page. As ever we are happy to fill orders made directly to us by phone, US mail (a printable order form link is on the web page), or email if all information is provided, we ship promptly and will invoice on trust. It came to our attention that some times folks don't get through to us, and I am sorry for the sometime message or order slipping through the cracks, we try to provide contact information everywhere and respond asap. If it is any help for those sending emails, and I do get queries about MS getting through because of subject lines that have words like books, titles, or something that makes it easier to find in the flood of junk mails we still get. So, please don't give up, and thank you for ordering however you are doing so, orders direct through us are greatly appreciated.

Another Kind of Tea Party

In case you haven't heard; Coming Up: The annual Poets' Tea held each year at Blaine House, the governor's mansion in Augusta, Thursday, April 15, 2:30-4 p.m.

Maine's poet laureate Betsy Sholl is organizing the event, and First Lady Karen Baldacci will be hosting it. Dawn Potter will be one of three poets reading that afternoon.

Everyone is welcome, but please let them know if you are planning to attend with an entourage.

Blaine House
192 State Street
Augusta, ME 04330-6406
(207) 287-2121

Travel Directions

On February 24th Garrison Keillor will read a poem from Joan Siegel's book "Hyacinth for the Soul," Deerbrook Editions 2009. The poem he requested to read is "Travel Directions." I hope you'll be listening because Joan is an accomplished writer from Blooming Grove, NY, and has many fine poems in this book. We are pleased Mr. Keillor has chosen to read from Joan's book, as we are always pleased when he chooses to read from one of our books, giving us information about writers, and reading, bringing poetry to the air, as ever, thank you Garrison Keillor for all that you are doing.

Garrison Keillor Reading Dawn Potter

Another poem by Dawn, "Nostalgia," was read on February 13th on "The Writer's Almanac." Dawn said this is one of her favorite poems in the book, and it is fine. I happen to think there are several very good poems in Dawn's book, and this is one of them. Thank you Garrison Keillor.

Dawn Potter previously had two poems read on "The Writer's Almanac.

Garrison Keillor read "Wednesday" on Jan 29, and "Lullaby" on Jan. 31.

These poems appear in "Boy Land & Other Poems," Deerbrook Editions, 2004. The book is still available from us directly, we ship promptly, so write or call the contact information, and we hope you'll do so. You also can order the book through amazon.com

When the archive listing is available on "The Writer's Almanac" web site we will post the link here.



Dawn has a new poetry book coming out this year from CavanKerry Press, and has a book out from University of Massachusetts Press "Tracing Paradise, Two Years in Harmony with John Milton; A Reader's Memoir." You can see more about Dawn and what she is doing here.

Upcoming Event ; Feb. 13, 2010

A Performance in Two Voices with Cello
‘The Thinking Heart’

Listen to a radio spot on MPBN about this at Martin's profile and look under Programs.

"Poignant and stirring, The Thinking Heart leaves an indelible impression. The performers transform the essence of Etty's rich inner and outer world as a chronicler of life."
Robert Bernheim, Executive Director, Holocaust & Human Rights Center of Maine

Martin Steingesser & Judy Tierney

Robin Jellis - Cello

poems based on

Etty Hillesum An Interrupted Life & Letters from Westerbork


Portland Conservatory of Music
Concert Series
Woodford Congregational Church
202 Woodford Street • Portland, Maine
Admission $15 (Reduced Admission on Request)
Saturday, February 13, 2010 • 7:30 pm

Somewhere in Etty’s long journey into the Holocaust night, she discovers light
in herself that became visible, an incandescence, still glowing.
To open her journal, or hear these poems, is to see light, feel its heat.


For Additional Information Contact
Portland Conservatory of Music • 207-775-3356
Martin Steingesser, Author & Artistic Director "mailto:windspooning@yahoo.com" 207-828-9937


Thank you to the Maine Humanities Council & Maine Arts Commission for support to The Thinking Heart

Etty Hillesum
An Interrupted Life & Letters from Westerbork

Stepping Westward—Poetry as Cairns

Stepping Westward—Poetry as Cairns
Performance & Poetry Workshop
with Martin Steingesser & Judy Tierney
Living Water Spiritual Center
93 Halifax Street, Winslow, Maine
November  14, from 9:30  am  to 3:30  pm
Fee for performance and workshop is $45, including lunch.
Pre-registration,  with fee, requested.

The program is in two parts, the first a presentation of poems, viewing and treating them as cairns that mark a way along the road we call aging. Just as the traveler marks a trail by placing stones along the way, poems may serve as guides, or be used to pay tribute or celebrate another’s passing. The program explores ways some poems guide, some reassure that—if alone—others have traveled similar paths, understood something of the terrain and moved on.
“The program itself is meant to be a journey we might be nourished to take together,” Tierney says, “stopping to lift and touch some of the poems for what reassurance, light and joy we find in them.”
In the second part, participants will be encouraged and helped in identifying moments to write about that might serve as markers, or memorials, on their own life’s path.
“We will be looking for how wind soughing among spruce and hemlock, lap of waves, the migrating geese, conversation and weather ruffle the heart’s fur, reflect and carry our stories,” Steingesser says.
Steingesser is the author of a book of poems, "Brothers of Morning", and also a performer. Portland’s first Poet Laureate (2007-09), he was selected to receive the Maine Alliance for Art Education’s Bill Bonyun Award in 2006 “for exemplified talent and professionalism as an artist and for being an inspiration to students, teachers and the community.”
Judy Tierney has been presenting poems in Maine for several years and has been nourished in the garden of poetry over many life seasons. She was creator and host of a weekly radio program, “Walking in the Air,” celebrating poetry and its voices, on WRFR, Rockland’s community radio station.
Steingesser and Tierney also perform together with a cellist in an award-winning program, “The Thinking Heart,” an original ensemble work based on the writings of a Dutch woman who died in the Holocaust, which has been the recipient of several Arts and Humanities grants from the Maine Humanities Council and Maine Arts Commission.


For additional information go to title link; http://retreatinmaine.com/calendar.htm
Or Contact • Living Water Spiritual Center, 207-872-2370, or info@retreatmaine.com
Martin Steingesser & Tierney, Presenters, 207-828-9937, or windspooning@yahoo.com