Former U.S. Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky presents and discusses "Robert Pinsky: The First Two Books of Poems" and "On Poetry, Democracy, and Culture" with Eliza Griswold.
About "Robert Pinsky: The First Two Books of Poems:"
Award-winning poet Robert Pinsky’s first two collections—"Sadness And Happiness" and "An Explanation of America"—announced the arrival of a major new voice in American poetry. Now, these acclaimed books are presented together in a single volume featuring a new preface by the author, introducing a new generation of readers to the groundbreaking early work of a beloved poet. "Sadness And Happiness" explores everyday subjects such as the streets and oceanfront of Pinsky’s hometown of Long Branch, New Jersey, while the long title poem of "An Explanation of America" examines personal and national myths as it transports readers across the country.
About "On Poetry, Democracy, and Culture:"
For Robert Pinsky, poetry’s individual, human scale as a fundamentally vocal medium—with poems brought to life by one person at a time—gives poetry a unique importance in American and democratic culture and society. This book brings together two compelling works of criticism by the former poet laureate—"The Situation of Poetry" and "Democracy, Culture and the Voice of Poetry," in which he makes a passionate and eloquent case for the vital role of poetry in a democracy.
About the Author:
Robert Pinsky is an award-winning American poet, essayist, and translator. He has been a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for poetry and the National Book Critics Circle Award for criticism. He served for three terms as the U.S. Poet Laureate, during which time he founded the Favorite Poem Project. His many books include "On Poetry, Culture, and Democracy" (Princeton), the memoir "Jersey Breaks: Becoming an American Poet," and the poetry collections "Proverbs of Limbo, At the Foundling Hospital, and Selected Poems." His bestselling translation of Dante’s "Inferno" won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Among his other awards and honors are the William Carlos Williams Award, the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize, the PEN/Voelcker Award, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the PEN American Center. He is distinguished professor emeritus of English and creative writing at Boston University.
In Conversation:
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, translator, and poet Eliza Griswold, director of the Princeton University Humanities Council’s Program in Journalism, has been a contributing writer for The New Yorker for more than two decades, where she has extensively covered religion, politics, and the environment. Since 2016, she has served as a distinguished writer in residence at New York University. Griswold has written and translated several books of nonfiction and poetry, including "Amity and Prosperity: One Family and the Fracturing of America," which won the Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction in 2019; "I Am the Beggar of the World: Landays from Contemporary Afghanistan," which she translated to English from Pashto; and a recent book of poems, "If Men, Then." Her most recent book, "Circle of Hope: A Reckoning with Love, Power, and Justice in an American Church," builds on years of Griswold’s immersive reporting to tell the story of a Philadelphia church and a community in crisis. (Photo: Tori Repp/Fotobuddy)
For more poetry programming, see the digital brochure for "Verse and Voice: A Festival of Poetry" taking place from April 18-May 4 at the library.
Public Humanities programs are presented with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this programming do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
AGE GROUP: | Adults |
EVENT TYPE: | Poetry | Humanities | Civic Life | Author Talks | *Registration Requested |
