BELFAST — April is National Poetry Month and to celebrate the Belfast Free Library is hosting two Poetry Readings in the Abbott Room of the Library.

On Thursday April 6, at 6 p.m., three Maine Poets will read from their new books in a reading titled “Grief, Ghosts, & Islands.” Catherine Weiss (she/they) is a poet and artist from Deer Isle. Their latest book is Griefcake; Meghan Steerling (she/her) has three books forthcoming in 2023: Self Portrait with Ghosts of the Diaspora, Comfort the Mourners, and View from a Borrowed Field; Jefferson Navicky (he/him) is the archivist for the Maine Women Writers Collection. His latest book is Head of Island Beautification for the Rural Outlands.

On Tuesday, April 11, at 6:30 p.m., join poets Kathleen Ellis and Annaliese Jakimides for a reading titled “Word of Mouth.” In the 1970s, both Ellis and Jakimides moved from large cities, San Francisco Bay Area and Boston, to small rural Maine towns, Lubec and Mount Chase respectively, to live closer to the land. Jakimides remained there for decades. Many years later, their writer lives intersected. Recently, Ellis chose a multi-media artwork of Jakimides’ for the cover art of her 2022 collection of Body of Evidence, which won the 2022 Grayson Book Poetry Contest. 

Books will be available to purchase at the readings.

For more information and complete bios visit, https://belfastlibrary.org/adult-programs/.