A virtual talk with poet & author of Catching the Light
United States Poet Laureate and winner of the 2022 Academy of American Poets Leadership Award, Joy Harjo, talks about her most recent memoir, Catching the Light, and her rewarding lifetime as a writer and poet.
In this lyrical meditation about the why of writing poetry, Harjo examines the power of words and how poetry summons us toward justice and healing. Comprised of intimate vignettes that take us through the author’s life journey as a youth in the late 1960s, a single mother, and a champion of Native nations, Catching the Light offers a fresh understanding of how poetry functions as an expression of purpose, spirit, community, and memory.
Joy Harjo was appointed the 23rd United States Poet Laureate in 2019, the first Native American to hold the position. She is the multi award-winning author of nine books of poetry and two memoirs, a chancellor of the Academy of American Poets, Board of Directors Chair of the Native Arts & Cultures Foundation, and is artist-in-residence for the Bob Dylan Center. A renowned musician, Harjo performs with her saxophone nationally and internationally. She lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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This live, virtual event is presented by BPL's digital resource, Library Speakers Consortium, which curates virtual presentations with top authors from around the world.
Register to attend this virtual talk live and submit questions in advance for the author.
After the event date, watch the talk any time through Library Speakers Consortium