Tag Archives: The Next Chapter

A Poet Picks Up His Late Father’s Dry Cleaning

"Charity" by poet Kevin Young

Poet Kevin Young’s collection “Book of Hours” features poems about the death of his late father interspersed with poems about the birth of his son. The poems are reflections on these seminal events that so dramatically influenced the lens through which … Continue reading

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“Tattered Kaddish” by Adrienne Rich

A poem honoring those who die by suicide

For seven decades, Adrienne Rich wrote and published stunning poetry and prose that touched her readers, made them think, and challenged them to shift their perspectives. Much of Rich’s work is explicitly rooted in her identities as mother, housewife, poet, Jew, … Continue reading

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“The Dead” by Billy Collins

A poem that imagines the dead watching over us

Former United States Poet Laureate Billy Collins, who Bruce Weber of the The New York Times called “the most popular poet in America,” writes conversational, playful poems that drop observational truth bombs with a deft, lighthearted touch. Collins is a poet who brings his warmth and wit to the … Continue reading

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“A Woman Is Talking to Death” by Judy Grahn

A woman addresses death, and a whole lot more

“we are the fat of the land, and we all have our lists of casualties” Judy Grahn’s ambitious, arresting work, “A Woman Is Talking to Death” is her most celebrated poem, a piece about meaning and futility, callousness and tenderness, … Continue reading

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”Halo” by Melissa Stein

A captivating poem that offers an intimate look at death

Melissa Stein is an incredibly talented author. The San Francisco poet’s work has been published in a variety of journals and anthologies, and for good reason. Her writing is visceral — the imagery it conjures is at once heartbreaking and uplifting. … Continue reading

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“White Owl Flies Into and Out of the Field” by Mary Oliver

Contemplating the choice of ecstatic surrender at the moment of death

Mary Oliver is a contemporary anglophone poet beloved by many for her universally resonant contemplations drawing on metaphors from the natural world. Many of her poems are suffused with humbleness, gratitude, and wonder, placing death at the center of a … Continue reading

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