« JAZZ, ROCK et POÉSIE »

We’ll be there! Join us if you can! Dans le cadre de la Périphérie du 29e Marché de la Poésie LE CASTOR ASTRAL éditeur vous invite à une grande soirée « JAZZ, ROCK et POÉSIE » LE MERCREDI 29 JUIN à 20 H 30 – Entrée libre – à LA JAVA 105 rue du Faubourg-du-Temple – 75010 Paris Tél. 01 42 02 20 52 M° Belleville ou Goncourt La Java est un … Read more « JAZZ, ROCK et POÉSIE »

Alice Walker aboard Audacity of Hope

Yesterday the UK Guardian newspaper published an article by Alice Walker, the American poet — below the opening paragraphs; you can read the whole essay on rns — reader supported news — (a setup well worth backing, btw).. Why I’m Joining the Freedom Flotilla to Gaza   By Alice Walker, Guardian UK 25 June 11   Pulitzer prize-winning American writer Alice Walker is on board an international flotilla of boats … Read more Alice Walker aboard Audacity of Hope

The Audacity of Hope — Comes to Gaza

State Department Officials Have an Obligation to Speak Out Against Israeli Threats to Attack U.S. Boat to Gaza Athens, June 24, 2011 – U.S. peace activists preparing to set sail on the U.S. Boat to Gaza, The Audacity of Hope, expressed profound disappointment over a statement issued by the U.S. State Department on Wednesday, June 22, 2011. Instead of calling on the Israeli government to let a flotilla of unarmed civilians … Read more The Audacity of Hope — Comes to Gaza

Poems by Abdelmadjid Kaouah

Working on Maghrebi anthology here in Paris  — Habib Tengour will be here shortly, so I’ll post in some haste — and translating poets for inclusion. Here are a few poems by Abdelmadjid Kaouah, born in Aïn-Taya, near Algiers, in 1954. After the 1994 assassination of his friends  Tahar Djaout et Youcef Sebti he exiled himself to the Toulouse areas where he works as a writer and journalist. he is the … Read more Poems by Abdelmadjid Kaouah

Boualem Sansal: Cry for life

Via signandsight, which I hadn’t visited in some time, this interview with the Algerian writer Boualem Sansal. (Sansal has alreday appeared on this blog, here, for example). Opening paras below, full interview here. Frustrated youth: in Algeria author Boualem Sansal sees no chance of a national uprising like in Tunesia Algeria’s best-known contemporary author still living in the country, Boualem Sansal has been awarded the 2011 Peace Prize of the … Read more Boualem Sansal: Cry for life

A year in jail for a poem

Via “The Arabist“: Bahrain: A year in jail for a poem By Ursula Lindsey June 14, 2011 at 4:32 PM Share On Sunday a court in Bahrain sentenced Ayat Al Qurmazi, a 20-year-old education student, to a year in prison for insulting the king and inciting hatred. Al Qurmazi became famous after reciting poetry Pearl Square that includes the lines such as: We are the people who will kill humiliation and assassinate misery We … Read more A year in jail for a poem

THE LAST SON OF CHINA

Ai WeiWei In Munich hospital after surgery in 2009 This just in, a fine homage, a cry from the heart, for Ai Weiwei, the detained Chinese artist: THE LAST SON OF CHINA April 3, 2011, Ai Weiwei was detained at the Beijing Airport ..……………..hello hello hello…Weiwei…where have you been?…I see you in dreams…bleeding…in the darkness of the sun…43 spots in the flame…each a nightmare one cannot wake up from…Weiwei…the last son…you … Read more THE LAST SON OF CHINA

Paris Reading X 3

June 14th: Pierre Joris, Sylvia Mae Gorelick and Miles Joris-Peyrafitte 19h15, 14th June, Bar Long Island, 47 rue Washington, M George V. Pierre Joris’ most recent publications are his translation of The Meridian: Final Version—Draſts—Materials by Paul Celan. (Stanford U.P. 2011),Canto Diurno #4: The Tang Extending from the Blade (poems) as a 2010 Ahadada eBook, Justifying the Margins: Essays 1990-2006 and Aljibar I &II (poems). He is working with Habib Tengour on Diwan Iffrikya: An Anthology … Read more Paris Reading X 3

Edwin Honig (1919-2011)

This just in via the New York Times, see full obituary there: Edwin Honig, a poet, critic and translator known for his elegant English renditions of seminal works of Spanish and Portuguese literature, died on May 25 at his home in Providence, R.I. He was 91. The cause was complications of Alzheimer’s disease, said Barbara L. Estrin, a friend and former student. At his death, Professor Honig was emeritus professor … Read more Edwin Honig (1919-2011)

Poetry for Architects

Old friend Norman Weinstein reviews Guillevic’s Geometries (read full article here): Book Review: Diving into Architecture from Every New Angle: Reading Guillevic’s “Geometries” Why an obscure book of French poetry in a flashy translation goes to the heart of every architectural practice. By Norman Weinstein June 3, 2011 There’s something provocative in Tadao Ando’s remark that “architecture is in dialogue with geometry” – an emphatic seconding of his constant interest … Read more Poetry for Architects