Wayne County Reads
By Staff Reports
Published in News on March 27, 2016 1:45 AM
The 2016 Wayne County Reads Committee has announced that Dr. Anthony Abbott will launch this year's public programs with his presentation "Poems to Remember Always."
The program will be held in Moffatt Auditorium on the campus of Wayne Community College on the evening of Tuesday, April 5 at 7 p.m. The program is free and the public is invited to attend.
Abbott, the winner of the 2015 North Carolina Award for Literature, is the author of seven books of poetry, two novels, and four books of literary criticism. He is currently the Charles A. Dana Professor of English Emeritus at Davidson College.
Anthony Abbott experienced multiple traumatic events in his life and he says poetry gave him a voice with which to express his emotions and feelings-a sense of loss, grief and love. According to Dr. Abbott, "poetry is the language of the soul and of the heart." He hopes to convince his audience of this by introducing them to "Poems to Remember Always."
Since 2004, Wayne County Reads has provided free public programs that explore the themes and issues in the book selected for the one book, one community project. The book for 2016 is "Poetry 180: A Turning Back to Poetry," edited by Billy Collins.
On April 12, the second event in the series will be held at 7 p.m. at the Arts Council of Wayne County. An exhibit of satire in contemporary society will be on display. It will feature works of art by professor Larry Lean of the University of Mount Olive, accompanied by music composed by Franklin Gross and poems by Lenard D. Moore, also professors at UMO. On April 15, there will be a book talk on "Poetry 180" by poet Joseph Bathanti at 6 p.m. at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. On April 18, at 7 p.m., there will be a panel discussion, "Why Poetry?" with Lenard Moore, Marsha Warren, Richard Krawiec and North Carolina Poet Laureate Shelby Stephenson at Wayne Community College, in room 101 of the Walnut Building.
A talk on the famed poet Robert Frost will be given by Dr. Elliot Engel of the University of Mount Olive on April 26 at 7 p.m., with a reception to follow.
And on May 1, from 1-5 p.m., Sunday in the Park at Herman Park will present its "Passionate for Poetry" Festival, featuring music and dance performances, children's activities and a poetry contest. Throughout the month of April, Wayne County Reads will present programs at various schools in the county, including readers theater in classes at eight high schools by Mary Susan Heath.
To view a full schedule of this year's Wayne County Reads programs visit the Wayne County Public Library's website at wcpl.org.