Celebrating Paul Laurence Dunbar, Summer Solstice, and more

June 21, 2022

Celebrate Paul Laurence Dunbar on his 150th anniversary on June 27 by reading poems published in The Collected Poetry of Paul Laurence Dunbar (Dodd, Mead and Company, 1913).

“A Summer’s Night”
“After While”
“Nature and Art”
“An Easy-Goin’ Feller”
“Two Songs”
“Ballad”
“Longing”

Paul Laurence Dunbar, born on June 27, 1872 in Dayton, Ohio, was one of the first African American poets to gain national recognition. He is the author of several collections of poetry and prose, including Lyrics of the Hearthside (Dodd, Mead and Co., 1899) and The Uncalled (Dodd, Mead and Co., 1898). He died on February 9, 1906.

Read the essay “Paul Laurence Dunbar at 150” by editor and scholar, Joanne M. Braxton, originally published in the most recent spring-summer issue of American Poets, the Academy’s exclusive member magazine:

“The Civil War had ended only seven years before Dunbar was born, and he came into a world in which it was dangerous to be a Black man. Against this backdrop, I read Dunbar’s poem ‘We Wear the Mask’ as a schematic for how to interpret and understand his poetry. The mask is more than a metaphor or a symbol; it is the poet’s means of negotiating moral and linguistic space to attend to his own invisible wounds and contribute to justice-making for a community in need of understanding and care.”

Poems for Summer Solstice

“Midsummer” by Léonie Adams
“Summer Magic” by Leslie Pinckney Hill
“In Summer Twilight” by Joshua Henry Jones, Jr.
“June Sunset” by Sarojini Naidu
“Grace Among the Ferns” by Analicia Sotelo
“[Has Spring passed away?]” by Jitō Tennō

All of my life I have been a poet: Somebody moving in the world by means of words: Somebody working to tell the truth, always

Browse LGBTQ poems, essays, books, and photos from the archive, including June Jordan’s postcard to Kathy Engel on March 18, 1978.

“This has been, particularly the first year of the pandemic, a time of overwhelming grief and loss and loneliness, and a lot of people wanting to make sense of what was happening in the world.”

—Academy of American Poets executive director Jen Benka spoke with The Christian Science Monitor about the recent rise in poetry’s popularity, particularly during the pandemic, thanks in large part to social media. Read more.

First Book Award

Eduardo C. Corral will judge the 2023 Academy of American Poets First Book Award, the most generous first-book prize for poetry in the U.S. The winning manuscript will be published by Graywolf Press and the winning poet will receive a paid residency at Civitella Ranieri. Submissions for the First Book Award will be accepted online between July 1 and September 1, 2022.

What Jos Charles is Currently Reading

I just read Lucas Klein’s co-translated selection of Mang Ke’s poems. I’m in the middle of Carlos Lara’s translation of Blanca Varela’s Rough Song from the Song Cave.

Jos Charles is the author of feeld (Milkweed Editions, 2018), a winner of the National Poetry Series and long-listed for the 2018 National Book Award. Read and listen to Charles discuss her curatorial approach and more on Poets.org.

#PoetryNearYou Pick of the Week

Check out our #PoetryNearYou Pick of the Week: the Queens International Children's Festival, featuring live music, dance performances, games, and more. This two-day, fun-filled event brings high-quality arts performances and craft activities to inspire young people and families to enjoy the arts. Saturday, June 26 and Sunday, June 27, at 12 noon EDT at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center (153-10 Jamaica Avenue, Jamaica, NY 11432). Presented by the Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning. Register for this free event here. (Sponsored).

Apply Now: Poetry Coalition Fellowships

With thanks to the Mellon Foundation, the Poetry Coalition is pleased to announce the 2022–23 Poetry Coalition Fellowships, which are paid fellowship positions hosted by founding member organizations Letras Latinas, Mass Poetry, Urban Word, Woodland Pattern, and Youth Speaks. Applications are being accepted until July 3, 2022. The positions will begin on September 5, 2022 and end on June 30, 2023. Interested individuals who are 21 or older are encouraged to apply, including those who are enrolled in or have recently graduated from an MFA program in creative writing.

Sarah Lawrence College in New York City is seeking an assistant director of MFA writing program.
The University of Memphis is seeking a full-time director for its Center for Writing and Communication.

Revisit last week’s Poem-a-Day selections with us on Poets.org:

June 12: “One Girl” by Sappho
June 13: “Bird in Hand” by Jasmine Gibson
June 14: from “Pink Waves” by Sawako Nakayasu
June 15: “dent” by Henneh Kyereh Kwaku
June 16: “our general banality” by fahima ife
June 17: “Mentally missturbed” by Ava Hofmann
June 18: “My Love” by Bruce Nugent

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Celebrating Paul Laurence Dunbar, Summer Solstice, and more

Older messages

"Love Poem with Bighead" by Kaveh Akbar

"I want" by Jordan Jace

"Emancipation" by Paul Laurence Dunbar

"My Love" by Bruce Nugent

"Mentally missturbed" by Ava Hofmann

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