Poet, theologian, host of the On Being Studios podcast Poetry Unbound, he has a favorite pencil but is not a fanatic: “I use anything to get the idea down. I have written with pens and pencils; I have written on the back of sick bags on airplanes.” Computers. Cellphones. No crayon, but he’s not above it. … Continue reading »
Category Archives: Poetry
458: Elizabeth Alexander
This poet, president of the Mellon foundation, quotes June Jordan on the question activists should ask: “Where is the love? What are we moving toward, not just what are we fighting against?” Poetry, politics, and why your Thanksgiving dinner should include lasagna. Made Eritrean style. Continue reading »
419: Ross Gay
As a poet and essayist (Inciting Joy), he is acutely in touch with his feelings, and yet he refers to “the many ways I try not to be aware of what’s breaking my heart.” A paradox reconciled, plus pickup basketball as a model of self-government, and the pawpaw as a model fruit. Produced with Orion magazine. Continue reading »
357: Patricia Spears Jones
One way to describe art is to note that it has beauty but not utility. This poet rejects that dichotomy, especially when it comes to everyday objects. “Often, things that are domestic are diminished because they are connected to females.” She loves things that are both beautiful and useful: quilts, fans, teapots. A conversation with … Continue reading »
340: Natasha Trethewey
Poet Laureate, Pulitzer Prize winner, author of the celebrated memoir Memorial Drive. As a child, she received three books from her father, meant to cultivate her literary sensibility and deepen her understanding of the world, particularly about race and class: Wuthering Heights, The Great Gatsby, Light in August. If you were to pick three, what would they be? Continue reading »
Episode 165: Ta-Nehisi Coates & Sonia Sanchez
Poet Sonia Sanchez and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates each love Howard University, but it’s a complicated relationship. “Howard didn’t really want me to teach there,” she says. And for him: “I was never a great student at Howard University, but I was a great student of Howard University.” Love: it’s never simple. Two writers, two … Continue reading »
Episode 103: Diane Ackerman
Poet, essayist, and naturalist, she is the author of two dozen works of nonfiction and poetry, including A Natural History of the Senses and, most recently, The Human Age We convened at Poets house, along with musical guest Maeve Gilchrist on the lever harp. PERSON:Antonina Zabinski PLACE: Camp Pinemere THING: Squirrel anaesthesia mask RANDY’S THING: … Continue reading »
Episode 85: Paul Muldoon and Jean Hanff Korelitz
The guests on this episode are spouses. He is one of Ireland’s leading poets, the winner of the Pulitzer prize, and has written lyrics for Warren Zevon. She is a novelist whose 2012 Admission was made into a movie starring Tina Fey. I’m the shallow guy who went right for the celebrity connections. We … Continue reading »
Episode 80: Tracy K. Smith
It’s as hard to introduce writers as it is to make movies about them. Here’s what they do: they sit and write things. Not exactly lives crammed with event. I can say this: Tracy K. Smith won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for her collection Life on Mars. She teaches at Princeton and lives in Brooklyn, … Continue reading »