April is National Poetry Month

by Hope Loman Rowan Public Library

April is National Poetry Month, defined on its official website Poets.org as “the largest literary celebration in the world…marking poetry’s important place in our culture and our lives every April.”  Amongst its many goals, National Poetry Month strives to highlight the legacy and achievement of American poets, encourage others to read poetry, and assist school teachers in incorporating poetry into their classroom curriculum.

Since 2013, the Rowan Public Library has held its own event in honor of National Poetry Month: the annual Teen Poetry Slam.  At the program, aspiring poets between the ages of 11 and 17 can perform three original poems in front of a panel of judges for a chance to win prizes.  Because these poetry events trace their roots back to the Beat poetry movement and readings at Chicago jazz clubs, it’s no surprise that one’s performance at a slam is just as important as the poem itself—enthusiasm and emotion carry equal weight to content or style.  Since the late 1990s, young poets of diverse backgrounds have been attracted to this theatrical format, bringing new life to the national poetry scene as they perform on relevant topics like politics, racial injustice, and current events. Likewise, at RPL’s slam, poems can be on any subject as long as the topic of the poem and the language used is appropriate for all ages.  For those that are interested in participating in the poetry slam, registration can be done online through the Rowan Public Library web page, or by sending an e-mail to hope.loman@rowancountync.gov.   Free and open to the public, the event will be in the Stanback Room  of the first floor of the Rowan Public Library on Tuesday, April 18^th at 5:30 pm.

If potential poetry slammers would like to seek out inspiration before they write their own entries (or if individuals of any age would like to read poems in honor of National Poetry Month), the library has copies of many different poetry collections and individual poets’ works.  From the Young Adult collection, there’s “Earth-Shattering Poems,” a collection that captures intense emotions and experiences with poems such as “Sometimes with One I Love” by Walt Whitman and “If  You Forget Me” by Pablo Neruda.  “Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States” is a collection of poems written in both English and Spanish by young authors who write about the difficulty of straddling cultures and identities as they also celebrate the food, family, and love in their lives. “Jump Ball: A Basketball Season in Poems” by Mel Glenn is the story of a championship team’s season told through a series of free prose poems from different points of view.  Similarly, “Girl Coming in for a Landing” by April Halprin Wayland tells the story of a year in the life of a teenage girl as she experiences all of the highs and lows of school, friendship, and first love.

For those that prefer fiction, there’s “Bronx Masquerade” by Nikki Grimes, a novel written in verse that tells the story of high school students in the Bronx as they write personal poems based after the style of Harlem Renaissance writers.  “Poisoned Apples: Poems for You, My Pretty” by Christine Heppermann is a collection of free verse poems based on classic fairy tale characters that range from contemporary retellings to first person accounts set in the original stories, all exploring how girls are taught to think about themselves, their bodies, and their friends.

This is only a small sampling of all of the poetry books that are available for your reading pleasure, so make sure to check the catalog for other volumes or ask an RPL employee for help. And make sure to read and celebrate poetry all April long-- perhaps even try your hand at writing some yourself!