‘Godfather of grunge’: Documentary examines Seattle poet Steven Bernstein’s life (from Kalamazoo Gazette)
A poet and performer in the days before every self-respecting coffeehouse hosted its own “slam night,” Steven Jesse Bernstein had a wicked way with words that connected with the segment of youth culture that embraced punk rock in the late 1970s and grunge a decade later; unsurprisingly, he sometimes opened for bands like Soundgarden, Nirvana and Jello Biafra and the Dead Kennedys and recorded albums of his poetry for Seattle’s legendary Sub Pop label…
Poets Before Profits (from The Brooklyn Rail)
It’s the first day of classes at Urban Word NYC’s Brooklyn site. Rain is falling hard, in sheets rather than drops, and walking outdoors requires puddle jumping or wading across small rivers. But despite the near-Biblical storm, Willie Perdomo—winner of PEN America’s 2004 Beyond Margins award for his book, Smoking Lovely—is ready to teach, a stack of photocopied materials on his desk…
Seeing the Good In Goodbyes (from The Huffington Post)
When my sun was nearer noon, my days were all too easily obscured by the endless rush of days coming after it. There was a whole life left to live, with the best surely still to come. So many moments were left unrecognized for what they were — my life streaming in and over me in the shape of the only sensations I would ever know at the time, irreplaceable…
Poets, audience to share work at Spoken Word Series in Hoboken (from NJ.com)
The Theater Company’s Spoken Word Series, which will be part of the Hoboken Studio Tour, will highlight both poetry and prose. At the event, which will be held Sunday, writers will read selections from their collection and audience members will also be able to come up to the mic and share their work…
