Explore: Poetry

Tagged Poetry

Fall 2019 Author Events: Cultural Connections

During this fall season of Free Library Author Events , we’re seeing a lot of cultural connections between our authors and speakers. Let’s talk about the events taking place two days in a row, both off-site at the same…

Meet the 2019-2020 Youth Poet Laureate!

I’ll let constellations form and fall off this tongue Mold planets out of clay with clay with these hands, Create a whole universe behind these eyes I’ll spread myself across the sky in thick, bright strokes, and leave a…

You Can’t Kill a Poet

You Can’t Kill a Poet is a Philadelphia-based reading series for LGBTQ readers which just celebrated its 5th anniversary! The series is held at different locations throughout the city, including Tattooed Mom , South…

The Poetry to the People Tour Is Coming to Philadelphia!

At the Free Library of Philadelphia, we know firsthand that access to books and other media can change lives. The Poetry to the People tour is dedicated to increasing such access—so we’re obviously thrilled to be one of the…

Raquel Salas Rivera Receives Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship

Here's some exciting news to close out National Poetry Month : Philadelphia Poet Laureate Raquel Salas Rivera has been selected by the Academy of American Poets as one of 13 recipients of a new fellowship award ! Rivera, who was…

Poetry Reading Circle: Celebremos Global Peace!

A Voice for Peace, Concord, and Harmony: XIII International Poetry Festival in Philadelphia will congregate poets from Latin America, Spain, and the United States in an evening of verse and music on May 1. Each poet will read one piece,…

Book Donation to Recognize and Celebrate Polish Literature

The Free Library was fortunate to recently receive a donation of books by Polish authors that were translated into English, along with books in Polish for both adults and children. The books were donated by the Polish Book Institute , a…

The Poets of WW1

As long as there has been war, there’s been writing about war, whether in poetry or prose, exploring not only its glory and valor but its brutality and cost. "The Great War" — what we now call World War I—as…

Spanglish Se Habla Aquí

With an estimated 62 million Spanish speakers residing in the US, the United States now has the second largest Spanish-speaking population in the world after Mexico. But for many bilingual Americans, their preferred everyday…

Poetry Is Hot – Again!

Today, it seems that more Americans than ever before are writing poetry, participating in poetry slams, and entering poetry contests. But as we dive (back?) into poetry and draw inspiration from the great poets of yesteryear, it seems…

Introducing Philadelphia’s Next Youth Poet Laureate...

If you are looking for the future of poetry, look in Philadelphia. Young people in this city love poetry— writing it , reading it , and performing it on stage . Even as poetry readership is rising across the country, there is a…

Teens Explore Social Justice at the Free Library

by Timmy Lawrence and Geneva Williams, members of the Youth Planning Committee for the 2018 Social Justice Symposium for Teens. Today, more than ever, social issues have reached a pivotal point in our society. Although injustice may…

Art, Gardens, and Stories: Making Philadelphia Home

[ Editor's note: We librarians offer literally thousands of programs every year. It's a special thrill to get formal feedback from our audiences. We can't publish every review we get, but we're overjoyed to have gotten…

YAWP! Happy 199th birthday, Walt Whitman

At the end of the film Dead Poets Society , the students who loved their professor, Mr. Keating (played by Robin Williams ), stand up on their desks and proclaim, "O Captain, My Captain" as a sign of allegiance and respect.…

Passion = Poetry: Be the Next Youth Poet Laureate!

There’s something about writing poetry that sparks the need to shape the community around us. It inspires us to engage with others, it encourages reflection—and it incites change. Maybe conveying some larger truth within a…

Embrace the Sacred and Interstellar Through the Art and Poetry of Stellar Masses

Yolanda Wisher is back! She left us in 2017 as the first Poet Laureate since the Free Library assumed responsibility for nurturing our city's chief word smith. On May 9, 2018 at 6:30 p.m., she's returning as curator with…

Young Adult Novels in Verse

April is National Poetry Month ! I know what you are thinking—poetry is something assigned to you by a teacher and you kind of understand what the author is saying but maybe not really? Maybe the books you were assigned were a…

A Voice for Peace, Concord, and Harmony: XII International Poetry Festival in Philadelphia

The Parkway Central Library will present A Voice for Peace, Concord, and Harmony: XII International Poetry Festival in Philadelphia during the global celebration of poetry in the month of lyric and love, May. This event will…

Celebrate National Poetry Month

It’s April, everyone, and you know what that means – it’s National Poetry Month ! Each year, the Academy of American Poets "highlights the extraordinary legacy and ongoing achievement of American poets" by…

Teen Central hosts the Philly Slam League for Poetry!

Through May, the Teen Center is partnering with the Philly Slam League to host its 8th season at Parkway Central Library . The program will draw hundreds of teens and their supporters from week to week to host a friendly and…

An Evening with U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo

Co-sponsored by Monday Poets This year, Joy Harjo became the 23rd United States Poet Laureate, the first Native American honored with this position. Her 16 poetry collections include She Had Some Horses , Conflict Resolution for Holy…

Maria Fama reads from The Good for the Good: Book Release and Signing

Maria Fama will be reading from her seventh book of poetry, The Good for the Good, a profound and witty collection of poems inspired by her Sicilian heritage. Maria Famà is the author of seven books of poetry. Her work appears in…

Open Mic Night at the Library

Join us for an evening of music, poetry and spoken word at the Town's Café. Program runs from 5:30 - 8:00 p.m. and is for ages 21 and up.

Remembering Amiri Baraka on His 85th Birthday

Amiri Baraka is the author of numerous books of poetry over a career that spans nearly 50 years. His themes range from black liberation to racism. Baraka's plays, poetry and essays continue to be defining texts for African…

TRIPOD: Conversations with Place

The Writers Room 's second annual Canon TRIPOD photo exhibition is on view throughout Pepper Hall, home of the Art & Literature Department . Head up to Art & Literature on the 2nd floor…

Author Talk: Elaine Terranova and Thomas Devaney: A Conversation in Poetry

A Conversation in Poetry with Elaine Terranova and Thomas Devaney. Elaine Terranova has published seven collections of poetry, most recently, Perdido (2018). Her poems have appeared in The New Yorker, The American Poetry Review,…

Poetry Club

Come join us for our brand new POETRY CLUB! Share your favorite poem, or share one that you created.This program is for adults.

From Across the Waters

Join us at Parkway Central Library for a kick-off to Welcoming Week poetry reading and conversation with authors writing about immigration in today's America: From Across the Waters . This event will feature Julia…

Poetry - Poets on Film

Documentaries about poets and fictional films based on their lives or featuring their poetry.

Poetry in Translation

Take pleasure in reading poets from other languages and cultures.

Poetry - Novels in Verse

Poetry with special appeal for tweens and teens.

Poetry - Haiku

A poetry form which transcends its traditional roots.

Poetry - Great Contemporary Poetry

Selections from the Literature Department.

Poetry - Children's Poetry for Everyone

The young and the young at heart will relish children’s poetry for all ages.

Poetry - New Poetry for Children

Enjoy new poetry books for children

LitFinder *

Discover literature content from more than 150,000 full-text poems, 840,000 poem citations and excerpts, 7,100 full-text short stories and novels, 3,800 full-text essays published in the 16th-20th centuries, 2,400 full-text speeches, and…

Gale Literary Sources (formerly Artemis)

Cross-search all of Gale’s literature databases from a single digital space to find biographies, primary sources, contextual reference, and criticism. Includes Dictionary of Literary Biography, Something About the Author, LitFinder,…

Richard Blanco | How to Love a Country: Poems

Richard Blanco made history four times at Barack Obama’s second presidential inauguration: He was the first immigrant, the first Latino, the youngest person, and the first openly gay person to be the U.S. inaugural poet. Exploring…

Carolyn Forché | What You Have Heard Is True: A Memoir of Witness and Resistance

In conversation with Beth Kephart, the award-winning author of twenty-four books, including Going Over , Handling the Truth: On the Writing of Memoir , and Flow: The Life and Times of Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River . “An unflinching…

Feminista Jones | Reclaiming Our Space: How Black Feminists Are Changing the World from the Tweets to the Streets with DaMaris B. Hill | A Bound Woman is a Dangerous Thing

Social worker, public speaker, community activist, and blogger Feminista Jones is the author of the novel Push the Button and the poetry collection The Secret of Sugar Water . She was named one of the 100 Most Influential People in…

Ha Jin | The Banished Immortal: A Life of Li Bai (Li Po)

In conversation with Carlin Romano , Critic-at-Large, The Chronicle of Higher Education , former literary critic The Philadelphia Inquirer and author of America the Philosophical . Celebrated internationally for a prolific, “achingly…

Gregory Pardlo | Air Traffic: A Memoir of Ambition and Manhood in America with Kevin Young | Brown: Poems

“Intensely personal … funny and poignant” ( New York Times) , Gregory Pardlo’s poetry collection Digest won the 2015 Pulitzer Prize. An out-of-nowhere coup for the relatively unknown Columbia University MFA student and teacher, it was…

Leslie Jamison | The Recovering: Intoxication and Its Aftermath

In conversation with Marty Moss-Coane, host of Radio Times on WHYY Leslie Jamison is the author of the bestselling essay collection The Empathy Exams , a personal and probing look at pain and how we understand others’ suffering, praised…

Tracy K. Smith | Wade in the Water: Poems

The United States Poet Laureate, Tracy K. Smith is the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Life on Mars , a “strange and beautiful” book of verse that “pulses with America’s adolescent crush on the impossible, on what waits beyond the…

One Book, One Philadelphia Finale with Jacqueline Woodson

The One Book Finale will feature an interview with Jacqueline Woodson and Tamala Edwards, 6ABC Action News Co-Anchor. The program will also feature a celebration of the poetry and music found in Another Brooklyn, with performances of…

Patrisse Khan-Cullors and asha bandele | When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir

Watch the video here . In conversation with Marc Lamont Hill , Steve Charles Chair in Media, Cities and Solutions at Temple University, and author of Nobody: Casualties of America's War on the Vulnerable, from Ferguson to Flint and…

One Book, One Philadelphia Kickoff Event | Featuring Jacqueline Woodson and a Performance by Yolanda Wisher and The Afroeaters

Watch the video here . Join featured author Jacqueline Woodson for an evening of conversation, reading, and performance. In conversation with WHYY's Katie Colaneri, Ms. Woodson will discuss identity, shifting cultural landscapes, and…

Loudon Wainwright III | Liner Notes: On Parents & Children, Exes and Excess, Death & Decay, & a Few of My Other Favorite Things with Eileen Myles | Afterglow (a dog memoir)

Watch the video here . With a career spanning four decades, 26 studio albums, and untold scores of concerts, Loudon Wainwright III is one of the world’s most loved singer-songwriters. A prolific actor in a variety of television and…