Douglas Kearney at 61 W. Superior TONIGHT September 23, 2011: The Harriet Reading Series features readings and presentations by “Craft Work” and “Open Door” writers from this very blog. “Craft Work” regularly features poets, editors, and translators writing in detail about their work, while “Open Door” reports on events and community organizations around the world. Poet, performer, [...] by Harriet Staff

“I have been boiled in a hell-broth”: T.S. Eliot Writes a Letter to Virginia Woolf September 23, 2011: Check out this letter from T.S. Eliot to Virginia Woolf over at Paris Review. In it he sheds light on such writerly topics as an umbrella in the eye, tax returns, and getting a few essays over to Woolf for inclusion in a publication of some sort. He also references the fragment of a novel sitting lonesome in his study. Here's a bit: My [...] by Harriet Staff

SPD Fire Sale! September 23, 2011: Well, a Staff Picks sale, at least, but we just wanted a reason to include this clip. The deets: We asked our staff to choose 10 newish SPD titles that they are especially fond of, and now we're offering these personally-recommended books at 40% off! Just select any of the books listed below, put them in your cart, and enter the [...] by Harriet Staff

Franz Wright ‘escapes the constipation of the lyric poem’ September 22, 2011: The Huffington Post gets exclusive this week with Franz Wright, whose spooky new prose-poetry collection, Kindertotenwald, hit the shelves two weeks back. Through a series of e-mails, Wright shares his memories, musings, and good old-fashioned germanophila with Anis Shivani. A sample: Anis: Franz, can we begin by talking about the significance [...] by Harriet Staff

Rob Delaney’s Take on Saving St. Mark’s Bookshop September 22, 2011: Rob Delaney, comedian and perhaps the world's funniest tweeter (seriously, follow him: @robdelaney), wrote a personal plea in honor of St. Mark's Bookshop for Vice. In it he recounts buying Wisława Szymborska's View with a Grain of Sand and how that day steered him towards his calling. A taste: Earlier this week, a woman on Twitter [...] by Harriet Staff

You Had Us At Andy Richter as Emily Dickinson September 22, 2011: Paul F. Tompkins, comic and podcast extraordinaire, and Ben Zelevansky have created The Dead Authors Podcast in which "H.G. Wells Uses His Fantastical Time Machine to Transport Famous Authors from The Past Into Their Future, Which Is Your Present!" Tompkins plays Wells. Andy Richter plays Emily Dickinson in the first episode. From Tompkins' [...] by Harriet Staff

Constantine Cavafy & E.M. Forster in NYRB September 22, 2011: Daniel Mendelsohn looks at the "one-sided crush" for E.M. Forster and renowned Greek poet C.P. Cavafy in his review of two new books for the current issue of the New York Review of Books. The Forster–Cavafy Letters: Friends at a Slight Angle, edited and annotated by Peter Jeffreys (American University in Cairo Press) and Selected Prose Works, [...] by Harriet Staff

John Lithgow to give John Ashbery a Lifetime Achievement Award, natch September 22, 2011: The National Book Foundation has just alerted us to this lovely lovely factoid: We are pleased to announce that internationally renowned poet John Ashbery will receive the 2011 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters at the 62nd National Book Awards Ceremony and Benefit Dinner on Wednesday, November 16, 2011 in New [...] by Harriet Staff

Got Your Mos Def Introducing Vintage Kanye West Performing in Def Poetry Right Here September 22, 2011: New York Magazine's Vulture points us to something pretty great: a young, "pre-fame" Kanye West performing in HBO's Def Poetry in 2004, though a commenter dates it "[v]intage TWO THOUSAND AND THREE shit." Mos Def is there as well, introducing Kanye as "the future of hip-hop." (No kidding.) "Before he was at the forefront of the nascent [...] by Harriet Staff

Lawrence Ferlinghetti Day is Coming! September 22, 2011: This little blurb in SF Gate let's us in on a long awaited holiday: October 8th will be declared Lawrence Ferlinghetti day in Santa Cruz! From said blurb: Tuesday, October 18 will be proclaimed “Lawrence Ferlinghetti Day” in Santa Cruz by Mayor Ryan Coonerty and the Santa Cruz City Council. Mayor Coonerty encourages everyone to join [...] by Harriet Staff