Muslim Journeys Bookshelf Poetry Night, now available on YouTube

By Lisa M. Rabey
Systems and Web Librarian

If you missed our spectacular event last week of local poets and readers celebrating Islamic heritage during national poetry month, it is now available on YouTube.   Also check out the library’s guide to Muslim Journeys Bookshel for history and information on Islamic culture, art, literature, and more.

The library would like to thank the poets and readers, GRCC Media Services, and the staff at the library for helping make this a wonderful event possible.

Muslim Journeys Bookshelf: Poetry Night, April 24 at 7PM at the library

By Lisa M. Rabey
Systems & Web Librarian

GRCC Library is pleased to present, “Muslim Journeys Bookshelf: Poetry Night,” a night of poetry showcasing the diversity of Islam, Muslim lives, arts, and culture. The event, located on the 2nd floor of the library, will begin at 7PM. Admission is free and open to the public. For more information, contact please contact Lisa Rabey.

Bring The Noise: A Night Of Empowerment Open Mic Night, April 8 at GRCC Library

By Lisa M. Rabey
System & Web Librarian

In celebration of National Poetry Month and GRCC’s Pride Week, the StandOUT! Gay-Straight Alliance student group in partnership with GRCC Library is proud to present an open mic night, on April 8.

The event will be held on the second floor of the library at the Learning Resource Center. Doors and the sign up list opens at 6:00PM, performances begin at 6:15 and will go till 8:45PM.

The event is free and open to the public.

We’re looking to empower people whose voices have been held back in the past, be it because of color or sex, religion or orientation. This is the night to lift those voices up. This is the night to let amplifier, mic, and tongue work in tandem to shake the air with words, music, or just plain sound.

Bring your anger, bring your pain. Bring your joy and your victories, your sorrow and defeat. Bring the whole package because that’s what we are as people. We aren’t a few slices of adjectives or characteristics, we are being, whole and complete and as such we have the right to let our voices be heard.

So whatever you bring, know that you are bringing it to a stage built on love. Held up by beams of respect in the aims of peace and the hope that when we use our voices Monday night, that we can carve a place of unity in this world.

For more information, check out StandOUT!’s Facebook page for the event  (You do not need to RSVP to attend) or contact Lisa Rabey.

National Poetry Month: Green Alligators and Long Neck Geese

By Janelle Yahne
Library Circulation Associate

In honor of National Poetry Month, let me tell you about a childhood favorite. I still do not fully comprehend the lyrical qualities of poems, but I do understand the childlike view of the world that only Shel Silverstein could display in his poetry, songs, and illustrations. Even when Silverstein was morbid or macabre, I enjoyed the poems because of the images that filled my head.

I do not remember a lot of details of my childhood as clearly as I remember getting Where the Sidewalk Ends. The book was given to me at Christmas while my sister was given A Light in the Attic. My mother wrote a Christmas message about not being “Lazy Jane” and not to build a homework machine. The illustrations were creatively bizarre and I was not sure what to think about somebody being swallowed by a boa constrictor. Nonetheless, I fell in love with his books. I even recited one of the poems for my fifth grade class. “Unicorn Song” is still a favorite, and I enjoy hearing the sung version by the Irish Rovers.

I always knew Silverstein as the author of Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, and The Giving Tree, but he also wrote and performed songs, wrote plays, created comics for Playboy magazine, and created other children’s books. His poem “Unicorn Song” was recorded by the Irish Rovers, and he also wrote “A Boy Name Sue,” that was famously sung by Johnny Cash. We have many of his books in the library, with many available from MeL and also in bookstores. His illustrations are an acquired taste for some readers, but receiving his book as a gift will be a favorite Christmas memory.
Here is a list of books in our collection:

• Falling Up
• A Giraffe and a Half
• The Giving Tree
• The Missing Piece
• Uncle Shelby’s Story of Lafcadio, the Lion Who Shot Back
• Where the Sidewalk Ends
• Who Wants a Cheap Rhinoceros?

National Poetry Month: Pablo Neruda

Image of Pablo Neruda courtesy of WikiCommons

By Janelle Yahne
Library Circulation Associate

Poetry and I are merely acquaintances.

I read poetry when required for class, and recommended by friends. I listen intently as poets read aloud carefully chosen words and sometimes I understand what the person is trying to say. I am unable to distinguish average from amazing poems in the way I do not hear the difference between musical chords, but I enjoy the sound.

Thankfully, I have friends who understand poems intimately. Some of these friends can explain the nuances in meter and tone using the correct vocabulary. Some of these friends are poets themselves. Each friend has a favorite and I sent out a call to these friends to give me recommendations. The most common name on this list is Pablo Neruda
.
Pablo Neruda is considered one of the greatest Spanish language poets but also one of the more controversial due to his Communist politics and poetry. His poetry ranged from love to politics to the sea and everywhere between. Reading some of his poetry, especially about love and nature, reminded me a little Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s short stories based in Magical Realism with striking imagery built upon thoughtful words. Even in The Book of Questions, filled mostly with two line questions, it is the visions Neruda creates that grabs the reader more than the words: “How long does a Rhinoceros last / after he’s moved to compassion?” and “How do we thank the clouds / for their fleeting abundance?” are personal favorites.

As I have said, I am not an expert or an avid reader of poetry. Thankfully, the library has numerous books about Pablo Neruda and his poetry, along with books to assist with the understanding of poetry’s creation. Below is a brief list of materials we have for your use. Plenty more can be found in our collection.

• How to read a poem : and fall in love with poetry by Edward Hirsch
• Memoirs by Pablo Neruda. Translated by Hardie St. Martin
• Pablo Neruda : a passion for life by Adam Feinstein
• Pablo Neruda and the U.S. Culture Industry edited by Teresa Longo
• The Poetry of Pablo Neruda edited by Ilan Stavans (The anthology I mentioned in the post.)
• Twenty love poems and a song of despair by Pablo Neruda. Translated by W.S. Merwin