Amid the Library’s Big Read 2022, a nearly two-month celebration of reading and poetry, esteemed Kansas City poet Glenn North conducts a multi-generational workshop for those wanting to try their hand at verse and those looking to hone their poetry-writing skills. The session draws heavily from U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo’s themes of memory, homeland, tribal history, and Native rights in her Big Read-featured book An American Sunrise.

Poems created during the workshop will be shared during an open-mic event the following Thursday, May 5. Participants may bring their own laptops or other writing devices, or they can use paper and pens provided by the Library.

North, the director of inclusive learning and creative impact at the Kansas City Museum, was named the first poet laureate of Kansas City’s Historic 18th & Vine Entertainment District in 2016. He is the author of City of Song, a collection of poems inspired by the city’s jazz tradition and the triumphs and tragedies of the African American experience. He is a Cave Canem fellow, a Callaloo Creative Writing fellow, and a recipient of the Charlotte Street Generative Performing Artist Award.

North’s work has appeared in The Langston Hughes Review, Kansas City Voices, African American Review, and the American Studies Journal, among other outlets. And he has collaborated on an array of multimedia projects including jazz musician Bobby Watson’s acclaimed recording Check Cashing Day.

Please RSVP to secure a seat for the workshop as attendance will be capped. Participants are asked to follow Library health and safety procedures in effect at the time of the event.

Voices of the Big Read: Open-Mic Poetry

Explore Big Read 2022 at kclibrary.org/bigread.