2019 Maryland Poet Laureate Grace Cavalieri Reads "Work is My Secret Lover"
“We’re honored to have Grace Cavalieri join the distinguished ranks of Maryland’s Poet Laureates. Her lifelong passion for and dedication to poetry and the arts is nothing short of astounding, and I’m confident Marylanders will enjoy her readings and develop a greater understanding and appreciation for poetry through her service.” - Maryland Governor, Larry Hogan
Governor Hogan recently announced Maryland's ninth Poet Laureate to be the incomparable Grace Cavalieri. In his press conference regarding the announcement Mr. Hogan touched on Grace's "lifelong" dedication to poetry—one of those defining characteristics of a great artist. And it's true, no one works harder than Grace or produces more prolifically at such a high level. ASP celebrated this aspect of Grace in her Legacy Book, Other Voices, Other Lives which is an atemporal sampling of her entire career up to now, from poetry to prose, from plays to interviews with US Poets Laureate. It should come as no surprise to Mr. Hogan nor the careful reader of her works then that she has an almost religious dedication and inescapable fascination with her art and its many ingredients. As we shall hear, in her poem "Work is my Secret Lover," Poetry is her muse.
Hear Grace read "Work is my Secret Lover"
More From Grace Cavalieri
The beloved Grace Cavalieri “contains multitudes” according to Mikaela Lefrak in her newest article from WAMU taking a look at the life and career of the 10th Poet Laureate. And Ms. Lefrak treats her subject with the due respect of a life which cannot be covered succinctly in 500 words. She delivers a reverent tourists’ view of Grace Cavalieri’s life, hitting the big things: her poetry and work ethic, the passing of her husband, Kenneth Flynn, her conversion to Buddhism, and finally her new tenure as Poet Laureate.
Grace Cavalieri’s recent stop at NPR’s The Kojo Nnamdi show is now streamable. Over a substantive 22 minutes, listen to Grace talk about poetry, inspiration, and her plans as the 10th Maryland Poet Laureate.
Recently Governor Larry Hogan announced that Grace Cavlieri, poet, playwright, and long time host of NPR’s The Poet and The Poem, would become Maryland’s next Poet Laureate, succeeding the great Stanley Plumly. Now that she has been inaugurated, one of her first stops is The Kojo Nnamdi show. Kojo Nnamdi has been hosting his show on WAMU for 20 years, so he and Grace are kindred spirits in that regard–Grace has hosted The Poet and The Poem for over 40 years.
Nin Andrews is a poet. Most recently of Miss August which is out now from the awesome Cavankerry Press and most notably of the collection, Why God is a Woman. Nin Andrews is also a fan of Grace Cavalieri’s interview with Jorie Graham which she recently extolled over on ITN.