ReOccupy Writers Meeting Tonight to Rebuild Library, Though Mayor’s Office Claims Books Are Safe November 15, 2011: Aftershocks and responses to last night's eviction of protestors at New York's Zuccotti Park are of course coming in from all over--and importantly, Gothamist reports that the books, or some of them, are safe: As we originally reported at 4:15 a.m., the NYPD and Department of Sanitation tossed the entire contents of the Occupy Wall [...] by Harriet Staff

“That Jacqueline Waters sure runs deep.” November 15, 2011: We've told you about the No Slander podcast before--that's poets Ish Klein and Greg Purcell out of Amherst, Mass, talking poetry, games, spirit animals, books, and whatever else comes to their most animated of minds. They also generally feature either a guest poet or a recording of someone wonderful reading--their most recent episode stars [...] by Harriet Staff

The paintings of Rabindranath Tagore November 15, 2011: Are there any poets out there who don't dabble in the visual arts on the side? First there was an exhibit of Sylvia Plath's pen-and-ink drawings, then a new book of Elizabeth Bishop's paintings of landscapes and interiors, and NOW a show at the Asia Society in New York featuring over 60 works by Rabindranath Tagore, whose art-making began as [...] by Harriet Staff

Watch The Trailer for Being Nick Flynn November 15, 2011: Poet Nick Flynn's memoir Another Bullshit Night in Suck City is being adapted to film, which we reported on here. Now you can watch the trailer! by Harriet Staff

T. R. Hummer’s Ephemeron is “awesome dipped in awesomesauce” November 15, 2011: That's what Brian Spears thinks, at least. Check out his ode to Hummer's book in the Rumpus Poetry Book Club. Ok, here's a little tease. Then go read the whole piece, ok? I have a confession to make: I hate writing these kinds of essays. All I really want to say is “I chose this book because I think it’s awesome dipped in [...] by Harriet Staff

OWS Raid: NYPD Threw Is Holding Over 5,000 Donated Books in the Dumpster Last Night Until Tomorrow (UPDATED) November 15, 2011: You've probably already read about the NYPD raid on Occupy Wall Street's Zuccotti Park headquarters that went down this morning (it received front page coverage in The New York Times, as of 3:45 a.m. EST). Facebook and Twitter posts have been quick to inform us with the latest updates; one of the most shocking is confirmation that the over [...] by Harriet Staff

The book collector and “The Subconscious Shelf” November 14, 2011: The New York Times looks at the history of our bookshelves: "Because books can be owned without being read and read without being owned, bookshelves reveal at once our most private selves and our most public personas. They can serve as a utilitarian tool or a theatrical prop." "To expose a bookshelf is to compose a self," writes Leah Price. She [...] by Harriet Staff

Chicago’s own Read/Write Library in the NYT! November 14, 2011: The Read/Write Library -- formerly known as the Chicago Underground Library -- has had many homes (six, actually!) over the years. Last Friday, the Chicago-focused archive of indie and small press publications moved into some nice new digs in the Humboldt Park neighborhood. The NYT was there to check out the scene: Volunteers pored over books [...] by Harriet Staff

Poet Geoffery O’Brien joins the Occupy Berkeley protest fray November 14, 2011: Thanks to the tip from Poets & Writers, we see that poet Geoffery O'Brien has had a run-in, quite similar to Bob Hass's, it appears, with the police on UC Berkeley's campus: There's a lot of controversy at U.C. Berkeley after two videos surfaced showing law enforcement officers dragging to "Occupy Cal" demonstrators by their hair. The [...] by Harriet Staff

Czech poet Ivan Martin Jirous, 1944 – 2011 November 14, 2011: Ivan Martin Jirous -- a Czech poet and the artistic director of The Plastic People of the Universe, an avant-garde rock group banned by the country's Communist regime -- died in Prague last Thursday at the age of 67. Better known by his nickname "Magor," which roughly translates as "loony" and derives from "phantasmagoria," Jirous trained as [...] by Harriet Staff