This week we welcome J. Chester Johnson as our guest blogger. Chester has written
verse for over forty years. His work
received praise from writers and poets spanning several decades –
from, among others, Allen Tate and Nobel Laureate I. B. Singer to
current, well-known poets, such as Molly Peacock and Major Jackson, who commented,
regarding Johnson’s most recent volume, St.
Paul’s Chapel & Selected Shorter Poems: “Undoubtedly, this is a work
headed for literary permanence in our collective ear.” In his 20s, Johnson served with W. H. Auden
as the two poets for the retranslation of the Psalms, as now contained in The Book of Common Prayer. For the last
ten years, “St. Paul’s Chapel,” the signature poem for his recent book of verse,
has been the memento card for the approximately 30,000 weekly visitors to the
Chapel at Ground Zero.
Welcome, Chester.
In other news:
Monday, October 15, 2012 at 7:00 PM: Celebrate Rising Russian and American Poets including Heather Christle, Tina Chang, Matthew Yeager.
New York Public Library, Mid-Manhattan Branch, 42nd Street and 5th Avenue, NYC
Free. Details here.
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— sdh