Friday, September 30, 2011

Poetry Friday: Rhyme, Hokum and Genius (and oh, yes, Poetry Advocates for Children and Young Adults!)


Kay Ryan 
A.E. Stallings
I was so pleased to hear the other day that the MacArthur Foundation named both Kay Ryan and A.E. Stallings as recipients of MacArthur Fellowships (aka "the genius grant.") I love the original work of both of these women, and the translation work, too, of Stallings.

Here are links to videos of them talking about what winning the fellowship ($500,000 divided evenly over the next five years - no strings attached) means to them. What Ryan has to say about things being "bound by sound" and about how rhyme can make connections all on its own is just what I believe. What she says about rhyme and hokum made me laugh out loud! Not many people, when talking about getting a "genius" grant, would be that funny and self-effacing.

Kay Ryan
A.E. Stallings 

I was going to add a small poem by Ryan (she has many small gems) but I want instead to urge you all to go look at the website ("Poetry at Play") for Poetry Advocates for Children and Young Adults (PACYA.) I'm proud to be part of the Advisory Board for this group of people working to encourage the love of poetry in children as they grow. PACYA has ambitious goals, and with the help of the internet, social networking and good, basic grassroots enthusiasm, we hope to reach those goals with the help of wonderful teachers, librarians, writers and readers of poetry around the country.
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Today's Poetry Friday round-up can be found over at  Sara Lewis Holmes's Read Write Believe. Head over there to see what other people have posted.
P.S. I covet that library Sara has in her new house!!!!



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5 comments:

  1. GatheringBooksSeptember 30, 2011 at 3:53 AM

    Nice! I so love the sound of a 'genius award' - and no strings? for 250k, no strings? Sounds awesome! I am glad that you have introduced me to these two lovely women. I shall be on the look out for their works.

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  2. Robyn Hood BlackSeptember 30, 2011 at 11:31 AM

    Thank you, Julie - loved those videos! And Steven's PACYA endeavor looks terrific, with wonderful folks supporting it. I look forward to seeing what blossoms!

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  3. SaraSeptember 30, 2011 at 12:54 PM

    I just like saying the word 'hokum.' I heard Kay Ryan at the National Book Festival--last year, maybe? Or the year before? She's quite funny, and very humble.

    I'll check out PACYA. That's fun to say, too. :)

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  4. Mary LeeOctober 1, 2011 at 4:22 AM

    Thank you for these poetry PSAs. Mostly, thanks for a dose of Kay Ryan, first thing on a Saturday morning. Yes, hokum, but how about "recombinant rhyme"? A PERFECT description of her way with language! Kay Ryan is a brilliant poet, and I'm glad the MacArthur Foundation has "invested" in her with this award.

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  5. Julie October 1, 2011 at 2:55 PM

    You're so right, Mary Lee, about that lovely phrase, "recombinant rhyme." Perfect.

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