On August 12th, we held our first (and hopefully annual) intern and staff reading. We got to hear personal works as well as everyone’s favorite poetry. Enjoy!
Response to Adam
I really agree with you Adam. I am working at Poets House, a literary organization and library in New York city. I often spend time in the children’s room and I have noticed that I don’t know a lot of the most popular books today! What I do like is that I have the chance to type up poems with the children on old type writers and put them on cards in library catalog drawers. I especially agree that what you read as a child influences you as a writer and maybe more notably, as a reader…I read a lot of Emily Dickinson as a child…I loved the sound and some of the whimsical imagery of nature though I didn’t understand most of the darker content. I also love The Giving Tee. I think reading poetry aloud at a young age tunes the ear to language, even the way I think of certain images of sunrise and snakes is tied to Emily’s metaphors…In school every year, maybe month, we would memorize poems individually and as a class, a reason I think I am so obsessed with the idea of voice. One funny anecdote I recently shared with some Roundies was about browsing anthologies in the library as a kid…I used to look for the author and see Anon. I thought he was a famous poet, but it really was the abbreviation for anonymous. Last week I stumbled upon a great quotation by Virginia Woolf:
“I would venture to guess that Anon, who wrote so many poems without signing them, was often a woman.”
-Elizabeth Metzger
Let’s start the conversation!
Hey guys,
I’ve got a quick post just to get this thing started. Nothing too intellectual - it is still summer, after all.
I’ve been spending my summer working at a day camp, and every once in a while, I try to talk to my campers about any favorite books they might have. Some I’ve heard of, others are completely new to me. None of the campers, however, have mentioned the books that I loved as a child. Harold and the Purple Crayon. The Berenstein Bears. Frog and Toad. This is a different generation, so it makes sense that they should have their own defining literature, but at the same time, I can’t help but feel nostalgic. The books that I loved as a child were so influential in my development as a reader and as a person overall, and I can’t imagine any of today’s most popular children’s books taking their places.
Children’s literature is a unique category, and one that we don’t often give thought to at the college-level. Let’s change that. Going back in your memories, what are some of the children’s books you remember from 10-15 years ago? How did they influence your identity as a reader and/or writer? And does anyone love Harold and the Purple Crayon as much as I do?
-Adam
