Richard Lewis reads his own short poems as well as the haiku of Issa and Basho. We’ll create small books, to be held in our hands, of our short poems about the changes of spring. Richard Lewis is the founding director of the Touchstone Center in New York.

Four poets gather to speak on the poetry of Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956). A ground-breaking playwright and committed Marxist, Brecht expanded the boundaries of verse by combining biting political satire with such diverse influences as the 16^th-century ballad, popular song and the writings of Rudyard Kipling.

Ishmael Reed discusses the work of Tom Dent (1932–1998), a poet and lifelong activist. Dent helped found the Umbra Workshop, an influential collective of African-American writers that included Ishmael Reed. He also worked as the public information director for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, among many other contributions.

Please join us as we welcome The Honorable C. Virginia Fields, Manhattan Borough President, and special guest Quincy Troupe, and salute the nearly 2,000 new books of poetry published in the U.S. this year—-all of which are on display in the annual Poets House Showcase.

Please RSVP 212.431.7920x15.