There’s no better place to wander than the Texas Book Festival, and no better companion to wandering than poetry. Whether you’re a seasoned reader of poetry or not, we’ve curated a guide of the Festival’s featured poetry to give you a little nudge in that direction. Eager to get to know more sessions? Check out our Guide to Debut Breakout Authors and our full program schedule.
Saturday, 27 October 12:00 pm – 12:45 pm
Heid Erdrich, Tacey M. Atsitty, Sy Hoahwah, and Tommy Pico
New Poets of Native Nations
Location: Capitol, CAP EXT 2.012
Editor Heid Erdrich has gathered poets of diverse ages, styles, languages, and tribal affiliations, all first published in the twenty-first century, in New Poets of Native Nations, demonstrating the extraordinary range and power of new Native poetry. Join her with Tacey M. Atsitty, Sy Hoahwah, and Tommy Pico as they read their work included in this vibrant new anthology.
Saturday, 27 October 3:00 pm – 3:45 pm
Sarah Kay, Laurie Filipelli, and Analicia Sotelo
With Wide-Eyed Wonder: Three Poets
Location: Capitol, CAP EXT 2.012
Curiosity and imagination, innocence upturned, and the depths of everyday life. Poets Sarah Kay (All Our Wild Wonder), Laurie Filipelli (Girl, Paper, Stone) and Analicia Sotelo (Virgin) read new work that approaches the world with eyes wide with wonder, ready to transform and to be transformed.
Saturday, 27 October 12:30 pm – 1:15 pm
Rickey Laurentiis, Tarfia Faizullah, and Rae Paris
History and Poetics
Location: Capitol, CAP EXT 1.014
Three award-winning, arrestingly original poets read work that reckons with the history entrenched in our land, our culture, and ourselves.
Sunday, 28 October 2:30 pm – 3:15 pm
Jasminne Mendez, Cristin O’Keefe Aptowicz, and Daniel García Ordaz
Poetry Out Loud: Performing Verse
Location: Capitol, CAP EXT 2.012
Through honest and autobiographical poetry, poets Jasminne Mendez (Night0Blooming Jasmine), Cristin O’Keefe Aptowicz (How to Love the Empty Air), and Daniel Garcia Ordaz (Cenzontle/Mockinbird: Songs of Empowerment) cover tough topics with beautiful words, including miscarriage, grief, and racial discrimination. Don’t miss seeing these poets doing what they do best — performing and discussing their work.
Sunday, 28 October 12:00 pm – 12:45 pm
Michael Cirlos and Daniel García Ordaz
Connecting with Community in Innovative Mediums
Location: LatinX Lit Tent
Poet Daniel Garcia Ordaz and photographer Michael Cirlos discuss working in different creative mediums to access elements of personal and community life in new and unexpected ways. Mixing genres, approaches and styles, they interact with their subjects and audiences to delight, inspire, and discover new ways to connect.
Sunday, 28 October 1:00 pm – 1:45 pm
Cyrus Cassells, Traci Brimhall, and Aimee Nezhukumatathil
Place of Verse: Poetry of the Earth
Location: Capitol, CAP EXT 2.012
New poetry collections by Cyrus Cassells (The Gospel According to Wild Indigo), Traci Brimhall (Saudade), Aimee Nezhukumatathil (Oceanic) find their inspiration in the Charleston and Sea Islands, the Mediterranean, the Brazilian Amazon, and the planet’s ocean to excavate grief, love, change, the past, and the present. Join them for a reading of earthly delights.
