Find All the Poetry You Need for Your Summer Reading List

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend June 20, 2017 Songs for the Summer Solstice   Celebrate the summer solstice tomorrow by reading and sharing these poems for the season.   "To Summer" by William Blake "Deep Lane [June 23rd, evening of the first fireflies]" by Mark Doty "Summer in the South" by Paul Laurence Dunbar "Knoxville, Tennessee" by Nikki Giovanni "In the Mountains on a Summer Day" by Li Po "Accidental Pastoral" by Maggie Smith "Strawberrying" by May Swenson "Solstice" by Tess Taylor "June Light" by Richard Wilbur

Poetry Breaks: Sharon Olds   Watch this week's new Poetry Breaks video, featuring Sharon Olds reading her poem "Summer Solstice, New York City," which tells the story of a man who considers his life at "the end of the longest day of the year." Get ready for the fireworks and barbecues with these poems for the Fourth of July. Find out what poets were reading last summer with these recommendations. Add these books, picked by former and current Chancellors, to your summer reading list. Summer Reading: Books Noted   What recent poetry collections do you need on your reading list this summer? Read poet Jennifer Michael Hecht's reviews of twelve notable books of 2017, alongside poem samplers from those collections. Four Questions with Our New Poet Laureate, Tracy K. Smith   Read this brand-new Q&A on Poets.org, in which we talk to newly appointed United States Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith about the role of the poet in American culture, the relevance of poetry, and what she plans to do as poet laureate. #SavetheNEA   Last week, the National Endowment for the Arts announced that it would be awarding $1,307,000 to 63 literary arts organizations—including the Academy of American Poets. This support is critical to our making poems and information about poetry accessible to millions of readers from all 50 states each year. Please take a moment to read a statement from our Chancellors about the importance of the NEA, and learn more about what you can do to help #SavetheNEA. In Case You Missed It   Terrance Hayes Named Poetry Editor of The New York Times Magazine Chancellor Terrance Hayes has been named the third poetry editor of the magazine.   The Academy of American Poets Appoints Four New Board Members We welcome Thomas Kean, Tess O'Dwyer, Elda Rotor, and Andrew Schiff to our Board of Directors.   A New Literature Network Amy Stolls, the director of literature at the NEA, tells the story of how nonprofit literary arts organizations across the country are advocating for poetry and literature in our culture.   Citizen and the Big Read The NEA is giving grants to nonprofit organizations across the country in support of community reading programs focusing on twenty-one works of literature, including Chancellor Claudia Rankine's Citizen.   Alberto Ríos Meets U2 Chancellor Alberto Ríos's poem "The Border: A Double Sonnet" is being featured as part of U2's Joshua Tree Tour 2017.   Mai Der Vang's Hmong Roots KQED Radio talks to 2016 Whitman winner Mai Der Vang about her poetry collection Afterland.   Poetry as Protest and Sanctuary Brain Pickings discusses Chancellor Jane Hirshfield's poem "On the Fifth Day," written for the 2017 March for Science.   The Academy of American Poets is supported in part by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. 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

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