Monday, Nov. 30, 5-6pm
Zoom, PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED at http://sanmiguelliterarysala.org/
free, donations encouraged

Richard Blanco, Distinguished Inaugural Poet, to Read at San Miguel Poetry Café

One of Three Special ‘Poetry Alive!’ Events

Internationally acclaimed poet Richard Blanco, author of How to Love A Country, will read and discuss his poetry via Zoom in a special Poetry Alive! presentation of the San Miguel Poetry Café on Monday, November 30, 2020, 5:00 PM CST. The online event is free of charge. Pre-registration is required at http://sanmiguelliterarysala.org/

“Richard Blanco is one of the most engaging and exciting poets to appear on our stage,” said Maia Williams, founder of the San Miguel Poetry Café and host of the event. “With an oracular and yet intimate voice, Richard lays bare the complexities and contradictions of his chosen country.”

Selected by President Obama as the fifth inaugural poet in U.S. history, Richard Blanco is the youngest and the first Latino, immigrant, and gay person to be so honored. Born in Madrid to Cuban exile parents and raised in Miami, the negotiation of cultural identity characterizes his four poetry collections: How To Love a Country; City of a Hundred Fires, which received the Agnes Starrett Poetry Prize from the University of Pittsburgh Press; Directions to the Beach of the Dead, recipient of the Beyond Margins Award from the PEN American Center; and Looking for the Gulf Motel, recipient of the Paterson Poetry Prize and the Thom Gunn Award. He has also authored the memoirs For All of Us, One Today: An Inaugural Poet’s Journey; and The Prince of Los Cocuyos: A Miami Childhood, winner of a Lambda Literary Award. His inaugural poem “One Today” was published as a children’s book, in collaboration with illustrator Dav Pilkey. Boundaries, a collaboration with photographer Jacob Hessler, challenges the physical and psychological dividing lines that shadow the United States.

His latest book of poems, How to Love a Country, interrogates the American narrative and the unkept promise of its ideals. Richard is a Woodrow Wilson Fellow and has received numerous honorary doctorates. He has taught at Georgetown University, American University, and Wesleyan University. He serves as the first Education Ambassador for The Academy of American Poets.

Following his reading, Richard will discuss the genesis of one of his poems. Wrapping up the hour, poet Catherine Marenghi will moderate a Q&A between audience members and the poet.

Richard Blanco will be the keynote poet on December 6, 2020 at this year’s San Miguel Writer’s Conference. To register for this keynote, visit https://sanmiguelwritersconference.org/product/richard-blanco/

Founded in January 2016, the San Miguel Poetry Café convenes monthly, September through April, and also holds special events. The all-volunteer organization presents local and visiting poets, both established and emerging. If you would like to be considered for an upcoming reading, please submit sample poems and a brief bio to poetrycafe@sanmiguelliterarysala.org.

Richard Blanco is one of three exciting solo-poet events confirmed for this season’s Poetry Alive! series. Visit http://sanmiguelliterarysala.org/ for upcoming events.

Pre-register for the November 30 Poetry Cafe event at http://sanmiguelliterarysala.org/; you will receive a link to the event in your email confirmation.