Tag: Poet

Ep. 264 Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude by Ross Gay — The Stacks Book Club (Clint Smith)

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Poet and Above Ground author Clint Smith returns to discuss our April book club selection Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, a poetry collection by Ross Gay. We discuss the moment of the book’s release and why it’s important within the context of the Black Lives Matter movement. We also argue that successfully engaging with a poem doesn’t require understanding what a poem is about, and we ask how much the author’s intent actually matters in poetry.

Be sure to listen to the end of today’s episode to find out what our book club pick will be for May 2023.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

Connect with Clint: Instagram | Twitter | Website
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To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 233 A Grieving Apocalyptic Historian with Saeed Jones

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Today we speak with Saeed Jones – award-winning author of the new poetry collection Alive at the End of the World. Our conversation covers the art of embracing chaos and finding humor, and how Saeed considers his poems in relation to the reading and the performance of poetry. Saeed also explains why he thinks of all his poems as traps.

The Stacks Book Club selection for September is The Trees by Percival Everett. We will discuss the book on September 28th with Lisa Lucas.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

Connect with Saeed: Instagram | Twitter | Website
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 184 The Desire Advocate Is In with Nichole Perkins

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We’re joined today by cultural critic, poet, podcaster, and author Nichole Perkins. Her new book, Sometimes I Trip on How Happy We Could Be is a memoir in essays that covers the intimate details of Perkins’ life. We talk on this episode about sex writing, setting boundaries, and intended versus actual audience.

The Stacks Book Club selection for October is Waiting to Exhale by Terry McMillan, we will discuss the book with October 27th on Nichole Perkins.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

Books

Everything Else

Connect with Nichole: Twitter | Instagram | Website | This is Good for You Podcast

Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 170 The Undying by Anne Boyer — The Stacks Book Club (Mychal Denzel Smith)

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It’s time for another installment of The Stacks Book Club. This month we’re discussing The Undying: A Meditation on Modern Illness by Anne Boyer with Mychal Denzel Smith (Stakes is High). Our conversation explores the commodification of cancer, the ways sexism is entrenched in the language of breast cancer, and how form and content can work together and fight against one another in the same text.
There are no spoilers in this episode.

Be sure to listen until the end of the podcast to find out The Stacks Book Club pick for July!

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

Connect with Mychal: Twitter | Instagram | Website | Open Form Podcast
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 168 Embodying History with Clint Smith

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Today we are joined by Clint Smith author of How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America. Clint is also a staff writer at The Atlantic and the poet behind Counting Descent. We talk about how Clint’s poetry informs his nonfiction writing, the capacity to be surprised, and the recency of slavery.

The Stacks Book Club selection for June is The Undying by Anne Boyer. We will discuss the book with Mychal Denzel Smith on Wednesday June 30th.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

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Connect with Clint: Twitter | Instagram | Website
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

The Stacks Book Club — June 2021

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After reading an 800+ page classics novel in May, I’m thrilled to be getting back to nonfiction in June with the 2020 winner of the Pulitzer Prize in nonfiction, The Undying: A Meditation of Modern Illness by Anne Boyer.

At the age of 41, poet Anne Boyer was diagnosed with an aggressive form of triple-negative breast cancer. This memoir comes out of the experience of being diagnosed, going through treatments, and ultimately undying from breast cancer. Boyer looks at the ways terminal illnesses are portrayed in art, the media, and the ways that the cancer industrial complex is flawed and erroneous. The Undying is full of emotion and lyrical writing that enhances Boyer’s observations and experiences.

We will be discussing The Undying on Wednesday, June 30th. You can find out who our guest will be for that discussion by listening to the podcast on June 2nd. If you’d like even more discussion around the book consider joining The Stacks Pack on Patreon and participating in The Stacks’ monthly virtual book club.

Order your copy of our June book on Bookshop.org or Amazon.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed. For more information click here.

Ep. 161 The Tradition by Jericho Brown — The Stacks Book Club (Reginald Dwayne Betts)

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On today’s episode of The Stacks we’re talking with poet, lawyer, and activist, Reginald Dwayne Betts about The Tradition by Jericho Brown for The Stacks Book Club. We discuss poems as fact or fiction, what happens when you hear a poem out loud, and the ways different poems can take on different meanings to different people.

Donate to Million Book Drive as part of The Stacks $50,000 fundraising drive.

The Stacks Book Club selection for May is Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, we will discuss the book on Wednesday May 26th.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

Connect with Dwayne: Twitter | Instagram | Website | Million Book Project

Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Apple Podcasts | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 160 Black People Doing Spectacular Things with Hanif Abdurraqib

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On this week’s episode we’re joined by Hanif Abdurraqib. Hanif is an author, poet, music and cultural critic, and the host of the podcast Object of Sound. We talk today about his newest book, A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance. We talk today about how Hanif expanded the definition of performance, restraint as a tool in writing, and finding gratitude amidst grief.

Donate to Million Book Drive as part of The Stacks $50,000 fundraising drive.

The Stacks Book Club selection for April is The Tradition by Jericho Brown, we will discuss the book with Reginald Dwayne Betts on Wednesday April 28th.

LISTEN NOW

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Overcast | Stitcher

Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

Connect with Hanif: Instagram | Twitter | Website | Object of Sound

Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Apple Podcasts | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 158 Reaching for Answers with Reginald Dwayne Betts

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On today’s episode we talk with poet, author, activist, and attorney Reginald Dwayne Betts (Felon). In the conversation we explore the ways we police and punish ourselves and the people around us, the conditions of worthiness, and the balance between form and word choice in poetry. Dwayne also shares about his nonprofit, Million Book Project, and the work they do to bring books into prisons.

Click here to be part of The Stacks fundraiser for Million Book Project.

The Stacks Book Club selection for April is The Tradition by Jericho Brown, we will discuss the book with Reginald Dwayne Betts on Wednesday April 7th.

LISTEN NOW

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Overcast | Stitcher

Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

Books:

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Everything Else:

Connect with Dwayne: Twitter | Instagram | Website | Million Book Project

Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Apple Podcasts | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

The Stacks Book Club — April 2021

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April is National Poetry Month so we’re going all in with an award winning poetry collection.

The Tradition by Jericho Brown won the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for poetry and is our book club pick for April. This collection examines the many intersections of life, safety, ancestry, and Blackness. Brown’s collection has range and moves between the power of the past, the intimacy of the personal, and the strength of the collective. In under 100 pages, Brown is able to ask questions around queerness, Blackness, fatherhood, trauma, legacy, and so much more. It is also worth nothing that this collection shows diversity not only in the content of the poems but in the style choices and form each poem takes one. The Tradition is not to be missed.

We will be discussing The Tradition on Wednesday, April 28th. You can find out who our guest will be by listening to the podcast on April 6th. If you’d like even more discussion around the book consider joining The Stacks Pack on Patreon and participating in The Stacks’ monthly virtual book club.

Order your copy of our March book on Bookshop.org or Amazon.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed. For more information click here.