The Hermit Poet

Just a quick note to say how much I enjoyed last night’s reading with Susan McCabe. David St. John gave us both wonderful introductions and the audience of faculty and graduate students was fantastic. We all had a great time — and the catered cupcakes were certainly a big hit.

It was good to hear Susan’s latest work — lots of exciting and fascinating things happening both in the poems and behind the scenes. I was also pleasantly surprised to find that we’d both been influenced by Frances A. Yates’ The Art of Memory in writing our books. Memory, forgetting, loss and reconstruction all play thematic roles inThe Lost Country of Sight — in fact, several poems were directly inspired by Yates’ discussion of mnenomic systems, the function of place in memory, and specific anecdotes about historical figures and memory theories.  I highly recommend the book — it’s a great read.

Right now I’m looking forward to Friday — I’ll be doing the Philip Levine Prize Reading at CSU Fresno and once again have the opportunity to meet the many fine people up there who have been instrumental in providing this opportunity for my book to get out into the world.  I’m also looking forward to seeing some old and new friends in the area.  Lots to do, but right now I’ve still got to upload the latest issue of Boxcar and get some more grading done before tomorrow.

Philip Levine Prize Reading 7:00 PM
Alice Peters Auditorium,
University Business Center
CSU Fresno
5241 N. Maple Avenue, Fresno, CA