CLA Special Achievement Award Winner!

Congratulations to Hamden Public Library's own Nancy  McNicol, winner of the 2012 Connecticut Library Association Special Achievement Award. Each year, CLA honors an individual who has implemented a significant project or initiated an innovative program which has had significant impact on the library, the community, or the library profession this year.


In the spring of 2011, Hamden Public Library’s Associate Director, Nancy McNicol initiated plans to celebrate the life and works of Hamden native, former U.S. Poet Laureate and 2011 recipient of the National Medal of Arts, Donald Hall. She partnered with various Hamden agencies, the Mayor’s Office, the Connecticut Poetry Society and a number of town residents to bring the plans to fruition. On the evening of September 16th, more than 300 friends and poetry lovers paid tribute to Mr. Hall. He rewarded his audience with reminiscences of growing up in Hamden and readings of his poems. We are all thankful for Nancy's tireless effort creating this remarkable event, and grateful to the Connectict Library Association for recognizing her outstanding acheivement!

Yale Dean to Discuss Poetry of Donald Hall

Mark Schenker, Assistant Dean of Students and Lecturer at Yale University will discuss the poetry of Hamden native Donald Hall in the Friends Room of the Miller Memorial Library on Wednesday, September 14 at 7 p.m.  In a free program designed to give readers an opportunity to familiarize themselves with Mr. Hall's work prior to the Friday evening celebration of Mr. Hall's life and work, Schenker will take participants through several pre-selected poems that will be made available to all those who register for the program. For further information and to register for this presentation, call 203 287-2680.



Hamden Celebrates its Native Son, Poet, Donald Hall

Former U.S. Poet Laureate and recent recipient of the National Medal of the Arts, Donald Hall who was born and raised in Hamden will be honored by his hometown on Friday, September 16 at 7 p.m. in Thornton Wilder Hall at the Miller Memorial Library Complex, 2901 Dixwell Ave.  The event will mark Mr. Hall's 83rd birthday and the publication of his latest book of poetry, The Back Chamber.  

Grandson of Henry Hall, one of the founders of Hamden's Brock-Hall Dairy, Mr. Hall grew up in the Whitneyville neighborhood of Hamden during the 1930s and 40s, attended Spring Glen Grammar School and Hamden High before going on to Philips Exeter Academy, Harvard and Oxford Universities. His youth in Hamden has figured prominently in several of his poems as well as his most recent memoir, Unpacking the Boxes.  The winner of numerous prizes for his poetry and other contributions to literature, he has lived on his maternal grandparents' farm in rural New Hampshire since 1975.

Mr. Hall plans to travel to Hamden for this event which will include presentations by Mayor Scott Jackson, Hamden Historian, Eric Lehman and The Connecticut Poetry Society.  The program is free and open to the public.

Things to do during National Poetry Month: Poem In Your Pocket Day

Today is national Poem In Your Pocket Day! According to the Poem In Your Pocket Day page on Poets.org, "The idea is simple: select a poem you love during National Poetry Month then carry it with you to share with co-workers, family, and friends."

If you're still looking for a poem for your pocket, may I first suggest our librarian Phil's poetry display on the main floor, or our new books section? If you don't find something there, you can look in the children's section or up on our third floor.

For those of you who won't be in today, there's also the poetry and poets search on Poets. org, as well as the Poetry Foundation's archive.

Poets in Hamden Libraries: Amber Tamblyn

No, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and House actress Amber Tamblyn is not scheduling a trip to Miller Memorial Library, but she is a published poet. You can find one of her collections, Free Stallion in the Young Adult area of Miller Library.

From her blog bio:

Amber Tamblyn was born and raised in Venice, California and is a 3rd generation Californian. She has been a writer and actress since the age of 9. She has been nominated for an Emmy, Golden Globe and Independent Spirit Award for her work in television and film. In 2007 she won the Berlin Film Festival award for Best Actress for “Stephanie Daley”, in which starred opposite actress Tilda Swinton... Amber is most recognized for her work as Joan on the CBS television program “Joan of Arcadia”.

Tamblyn is also one of many writers for Blog: Harriet, a feature on The Poetry Foundation's website. The Poetry Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) foundation and the publisher of the oldest monthly publication dedicated to poetry.

The above photo was taken by T. Carrigan onMay 16, 2010, and found here, through Flickr. It is protected by a Creative Commons copyright license.

Performance Poetry: Slam

Poetry slam is conventionally defined as the art of competitive performance poetry. Invented in the 1980s by a Chicago construction worker named Marc Smith, slam is a fast-paced competition where poets have a limited amount of time to impress judges randomly selected from the audience. Performers use all the tricks of storytelling, songwriting, theatre, stand-up comedy, and cold hard poetry to wheedle points out of the judges from 0.0 (terrible) to 10.0 (perfect!).

(from the "What is poetry slam?" page of this year's National Poetry Slam website)

If you've seen the HBO series "Def Poetry Jam" or the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics, you know what slam poetry sounds like, but have you ever seen it performed? Did you know that Connecticut has its own Youth Slam Poetry team? The team competes in national youth poetry slams, including the first one in Hartford, CT, in 1998. You can learn more about them at Upwords, "a resource for young poets".

Below is a recording of Connecticut Youth Slam alumnae Alexandra Hart and Emily Oliver performing their collaborative poem during the Providence Slam in 2006.

(Please note that the poets slam about eating disorders and self-harm. If these issues trigger you, watch at your own discretion.)

Things to do during National Poetry Month: Memorize a poem

Because I could not stop for Death –
He kindly stopped for me –
The Carriage held but just Ourselves –
And Immortality.

What is the rest of that poem? Have you read the remaining four quatrains? Do you remember them?

I don't, but I think I might like to learn how to remember them. Poets.org has a site with tips for memorizing any poem, not just one by Emily Dickinson, or one that rhymes. Just make sure it's a favorite! That tends to help.

National Poetry Writing Month

Unlike National Poetry Month, National Poetry Writing Month ("NaPoWriMo") is not a celebration officially recognized by any state or US governmental office. Instead, it's a challenge to those who want to write poetry: finish 30 poems in 30 days.

NaPoWriMo was unofficially "started" by poet Maureen Thorson, of Washington, DC, back in 2003. She wrote 30 poems over the 30 days of April, and posted them on her blog. When other people wrote poems, she'd link to them. After a few years, the community grew so large that Thorson decided to create a website just for NaPoWriMo. You can go there and click on the Participants' sites link to read poems by people participating this year, or submit your site if you want to accept the challenge and publish your poems for others to see.

NaPoWriMo is not affiliated with National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) or National Script Writing Month, but it is still a non-profit endeavor.

The above photo was taken by Steve McLauglin and found here, through Flickr. The photo is protected by a Creative Commons copyright.

Poets in Connecticut: Poet Laureate Dick Allen

Did you know that Connecticut has its own Poet Laureate? I didn't, but we do! The position was created in 1985, and according to the state's Culture and Tourism page about the position, the role of the Poet Laureate is to serve "as an advocate for poetry and [promote] the appreciation of and participation in poetry and literary arts activities among Connecticut citizens".

Dick Allen has been our Poet Laureate since 2010, and will continue to fill the position until 2015. You can read more about him on his website, his publisher's website or the Connecticut Culture and Tourism page about the Poet Laureate.

You can also check out one of Mr. Allen's poetry collections, Present Vanishing, from Miller Memorial Library.

National Poetry Month 2011

It's National Poetry Month again!

National Poetry month, first established in 1996, is a month-long, national celebration of poetry established by the Academy of American Poets. The concept is to widen the attention of individuals and the media—to the art of poetry, to living poets, to our complex poetic heritage, and to poetry books and journals of wide aesthetic range and concern.

Read Jessica's post about last year's National Poetry Month, or visit the Poets.org site for information during this year's National Poetry Month, including their calendar of events. Additionally, find out about the Connecticut Poetry Society (which meets here at Hamden Library!) or check out some chapbooks or books about poetry from Miller or our branches.

This year's Poem in Your Pocket Day is April 14, 2011.

Hamden Native Receives National Medal of Arts

Hamden native and former U.S. Poet Laureate Donald Hall has received a National Medal of Arts, along with novelist Harper Lee, actress Meryl Streep, musicians Sonny Rollins, Quincy Jones, James Taylor and Van Cliburn, painter Mark di Suvero, theater champion Robert Brustein and an organization, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival.

President Obama presented the awards on Wednesday, March 2nd. You can a video of the awards below.

W.S. Merwin - Poet Laureate

W.S. Merwin (born Sept. 30, 1927) is the new, 17th U.S. Poet Laureate.
He is 82 years old and wrote more than 30 books of poetry, translation and prose.

Books by W.S. Merwin in the Hamden Library

Article by Patricia Cohen published in the New York Times

April is National Poetry Month

National Poetry Month is a month-long, national celebration of poetry established by the Academy of American Poets. The concept is to widen the attention of individuals and the media—to the art of poetry, to living poets, to our complex poetic heritage, and to poetry books and journals of wide aesthetic range and concern. We hope to increase the visibility and availability of poetry in popular culture while acknowledging and celebrating poetry’s ability to sustain itself in the many places where it is practiced and appreciated.

There are many ways you can participate in National Poetry Month, including:

* Receive a Poem a Day in your inbox. Beginning April 1, Poets.org emails a new poem to your inbox each day to celebrate National Poetry Month. The poems have been selected from new books published in the spring. Sign up>

* April 29th is Poem in Your Pocket Day. Simply select a poem you love during National Poetry Month, then carry it with you to share with co-workers, family, and friends.

* Take part in one of the many Poetry Month events happening in Connecticut! View Calendar>

You can visit Poets.org for more information and ideas about National Poetry Month, or go to the Sleeping Giant Poets Guild web site for information on the poetry scene in Hamden. And don't forget to stop by the library and check out one of our many poetry books!