Poems and More for Summer Vacations

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend July 29, 2014 Be Calm as Water   August brings with it the last chance for a summer escape, and we’ve rounded up a selection of poems, essays, and multimedia on the subject of vacation and travel to accompany you on whatever trip you plan to make.   “The Moose” by Elizabeth Bishop “Looking for The Gulf Motel” by Richard Blanco “Vacation” by Rita Dove “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost “The Last Slow Days of Summer” by Phillip Lopate “Travel” by Edna St. Vincent Millay “I see the boys of summer” by Dylan Thomas “Travelling” by William Wordsworth

Breaking the Waves   If you’re planning a trek to the beach this month, be sure to read Camille T. Dungy’s essay “Shore Lines,” in which she writes about the literary lessons of watching the waves break on the shore: “I could watch...all day, excited to see how...the water will build upon and tumble over itself, how it will look and sound as it rolls over and withdraws back into the main body again. This is what I want to achieve in my poems as well, this degree of motion and momentum.”   Squaring the Circle   Don’t miss the latest excerpt from A Poet’s Glossary by Edward Hirsch on the history of the prose poem—from Emerson to Ashbery. “‘The prose poem is the result of two contradictory impulses, prose and poetry, and therefore cannot exist,’ as Charles Simic puts it: ‘This is the sole instance we have of squaring the circle.’” Buy Song of the Open Road, a CD for Travelling Read More Poems About Vacations and Travel Watch Marilyn Nelson in the P.O.P. Video Series Arthur Sze on American Poets Abroad   Academy Chancellor Arthur Sze discusses what he learned about the influence of American poetry during his travels to China at last year's Poets Forum. Join Us for Poets Forum 2014   The eighth annual Poets Forum, our three-day celebration of poetry, takes place from October 16 to 18 in New York City. This year’s highlights include a lecture by President Obama’s inaugural poet, Richard Blanco; a discussion of endangered languages and texts with Bowery Poetry Club founder, Bob Holman; a panel with small press experts providing publishing advice; and a special reception celebrating our eightieth anniversary.   Purchase your All-Events passes now through September 1 to save 20%. Thanks for being a part of the Academy of American Poets community. To learn about other programs, including National Poetry Month, Poem in Your Pocket Day, the annual Poets Forum, and more, visit Poets.org.   You are receiving this e-mail because you elected to subscribe to our mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe, please click here.   © Academy of American Poets 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901, New York, NY 10038