Pages

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Elizabeth Alexander To Read at Inaugration

Did you hear? Just heard on NPR that poet, Elizabeth Alexander will read at Barack Obama's inauguration. Yay!

Elizabeth Alexander is a poet, essayist, playwright, and teacher. She is the author of four books of poems, The Venus Hottentot, Body of Life, Antebellum Dream Book, and American Sublime, which was one of three finalists for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize. She is also a scholar of African-American literature and culture and recently published a collection of essays, The Black Interior. She has read her work across the U.S. and in Europe, the Caribbean, and South America, and her poetry, short stories, and critical prose have been published in dozens of periodicals and anthologies. She has received many grants and honors, most recently the Alphonse Fletcher, Sr. Fellowship for work that “contributes to improving race relations in American society and furthers the broad social goals of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision of 1954,” and the 2007 Jackson Prize for Poetry, awarded by Poets and Writers. She is a professor at Yale University, and for the academic year 2007-2008 she is a fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University.

link


link

6 comments:

Rethabile said...

Happy holidays. The best for 2009 (good health, happiness, dosh)

January said...

Elizabeth is a great choice to read at the inauguration.

Wishing you all the best in 2009!

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year! I was browsing, looking for some books to read, and thought of your site.

rochambeau said...

Happy New Year Susan!! Also, thank you to the introduction to Elizabeth Alexander! Looking forward to hearing her read at the inauguration.

Hope all is well in your fair town.
If you see Mary, please tell her hello from me!!

xox
Constance

rochambeau said...

ps
Like your daily quote!!

susan said...

Thanks for the well wishes. Know you all have been on my mind, too. Christine, I'm reading quite a bit yet not enough. Reading children and adult lit. You'll find plenty of reviews coming.

What did you think of Ms. Alexander's poem? I think part of its beauty was lost at the reading though I still found it beautiful. I read afterwards and the reading confirmed what I heard despite her style of reading.