“Our Favorite Things”: Katherine E. Young and Natalya Sukhonos Discuss New Poetry Collections
Russophone-connected writers Young and Sukhonos present alternating interviews in this fascinating piece from literary blog, Punctured Lines.
Watch or read this alternating interview between poet and translator Katherine E. Young and Natalya Sukhonos both of which release new collections of original poetry this year. The interview is published by literary blog Punctured Lines.
Young's Woman Drinking Absinthe was launched last Saturday and has since been garnering rave reviews across the web. WDA explores experience, specifically female experience, through a folkloric and impressionistic aesthetic utilizing at once the paintings of Manet, the classic horror tale of Bluebeard, and Euclidean geometry to draw complex portraits which transcend period, region, and genre. Read some of her poems here.
Sukhonos brings her immense poetic and empathic talent to themes of motherhood and loss in her newest collection, A Stranger Home published by Moon Pie Press. She also draws a strong sense of place by exploring "locales ranging from Odessa to San Francisco."
Featured Audio: Rose Solari reads “The Beginning, 1939”
In “The Beginning, 1939” Rose Solari’s mastery of recitation is put to the music of her capricious mother and the frantic hopes of her father who wishes to leave “no long, tight pauses for her to fill.” I’ve written before about Rose’s use of swing and rhythmic motifs in her work, elements which are alive in this poem, but what is really mesmerizing to me about “1939” is the musical image toward the end which harbors no pretense of cramming lieder into language, but instead focuses on the very physical act of her mother playing the piano:
Mikaela Lefrak Examines the Life of Maryland Poet Laureate, 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.
Listen to Grace Cavalieri on the Kojo Nnamdi Show
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.