Poems for the People

Episodes

1. 12

   "Like a Cat" by "Laura Cronk" read by Mischa Willett

   I love this little love poem by Laura Cronk. It somehow serves as criticism of and appreciation for cats, as well as of the beloved, and of the differences between people generally. Who among us hasn't known figures like these? I found it in the the Best American Poetry 2019 but you can seek out...

   Apr 23, 2020

   2 min
2. 11

   "Lot's Wife" by "Anna Akhmatova" read by Mischa Willett

   To learn more about Anna Akhmatova, you should read Clive James' essays, which are extremely convincing about her stature. This poem of hers was translated by one of my favorite poets of all time, Richard Wilbur.

   Apr 21, 2020

   2 min
3. 10

   "The Resignation" by "Thomas Chatterton" read by Mischa Willett

   Thomas Chatterton (1752-1770) wrote tons of moving and intelligent verse all before he was 20 years old. His life-story and scandal is worth investigating for sure, but move past it and actually read some of his Rowley poems. There is a reason the Romantics valued him so highly. He is also known...

   Apr 18, 2020

   3 min
4. 9

   “Forty” by “Lee Rossi” read by Mischa Willett

   A Lenten poem tracing the 40’s with humor, wit, and good faith from the lovely “Darwin’s Garden” from MoonTide Press.

   Apr 7, 2020

   4 min
5. 8

   "The Great Infirmities" by Charles Simic read by Mischa Willett

   "Perilous to be on the street, among the congregations of the afflicted" If ever there was a time for poems by the metaphysical physician Charles Simic, it's now, as #coronavirus has us all indoors or avoiding on another. -from Charles Simic Selected Early Poems

   Mar 18, 2020

   2 min
6. 7

   "Broken Hierarchies" by "Geoffrey Hill" read by Mischa Willett

   Available in his Collected Poems: Broken Hierarchies Oxford University Press, 2014

   Mar 3, 2020

   2 min
7. 6

   "What Lips my Lips Have Kissed" by "Edna St. Vincent Millay" read by Mischa Willett

   A sonnet from this starburst of talent.

   Mar 3, 2020

   1 min
8. 5

   Guest Reader: "Lauren Camp" reading poems from "One Hundred Hungers"

   Tupelo Press poet drops by the studio after a reading at Richard Hugo House. More information about the reader can be found at his website: www.mischawillett.com

   Feb 29, 2020

   8 min
9. 4

   "Calling Him Back from Layoff" by "Bob Hicock" read by Mischa Willett

   from "Elegy Owed" Copper Canyon Press, 2014

   Feb 27, 2020

   3 min
10. 3

    "When Our Two Souls Stand Up" by "Elizabeth Barrett Browning" read by Mischa Willett

    from the lovely "Sonnets from the Portuguese"

    Feb 19, 2020

    2 min
11. 2

    "In a Power Outage" by "Jennifer Maier" read by Mischa Willett

    From Jennifer Maier's "Dark Alphabet" on Southern Illinois University Press, a book I recommend without reservation. Those long, interruptive clauses, the doubling, the gratitude!

    Feb 18, 2020

    1 min
12. 1

    "Right Whale Luminary" by "Jeremiah Webster" read by Mischa Willett

    A poem about the bravery necessary to the artistic endeavor via c19 whaling practices. Featured in Jeremiah Webster's new book "After So Many Fires," available on Anchor and Plume Press.

    Feb 11, 2020

    3 min