April is National Poetry Month, of course, and two of the Triangle’s independent bookstores are getting in on the action, celebrating North Carolina poets in particular.
Durham’s Regulator Bookshop kicks things off tonight, Wednesday, April 1, at 7 p.m. with Liz Beasley and Tony Tost and then hosts another pair of poets on other Wednesday nights throughout the month:
- Wednesday, April 15: Shirlette Ammons and Andrea Selch
- Wednesday, April 22: Lenard Moore and David Rigsbee
- Wednesday, April 29: A pair plus one! Al Maginnis, Grey Brown, and Debra Kaufman
Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh has set aside Sunday afternoons (except Easter) for its month of poetry events:
- Sunday, April 5: Betty Adcock, Peter Makuck, and Julie Suk
- Sunday, April 19: Joseph Bathanti and John Hoppenthaler
- Sunday, April 26: Harry Calhoun and Sarah Lindsay
In addition to these bookstore readings, the City of Raleigh is also hosting 2009 Piedmont Laureate Jaki Shelton Green for a special reading on Thursday, April 2 at 5:30 p.m. as part of the opening of the “Southern Vernacular” exhibition in the Miriam Preston Block Art Gallery, located in the Avery C. Upchurch Government Complex, 222 W. Hargett Street.
In & Around D.C.
A few poetry events are already on my radar in the D.C. area as well, including George Mason visiting writer Kristin Prevallet, a poet, essayist, and translator who will read from her work on Thursday, April 9, at 7:30 p.m. in Research I, Room 163, at Mason’s Fairfax, VA campus.
A week later, the Cheryl’s Gone reading and performance series welcomes poet Nancy K. Pearson, author of the terrific collection Two Minutes of Light, to headline its April event, which also features Ed Davis and Sherri Sorvillo. The night is billed as “an evening of burlesque and poetry” and includes performances by Lil Dutch & Candy Del Rio. All of it unfolds on Thursday evening, April 16, at D.C.’s Big Bear Cafe.
And throughout the month, be sure to check out Brian Brodeur‘s great blog, How A Poem Happens, where contemporary poets talk about their work.
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I just discovered How a Poem Happens in March. Its a great blog.