The time has arrived for Benicia to have a new poet laureate. On Sunday, Tom Stanton assumed the position as Benicia’s top poetry official, and he takes the reins from Johanna Ely. In his new role, Stanton promises to bring some bold new ideas to the title. Stanton is no stranger to Benicia’s artistic community. […]
3 poets laureate to celebrate 6 female poets in free library event
In honor of Women’s History Month, the Benicia-Vallejo branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) will bring together three area poets laureate for “Voices of Change: American Women Poets Who Have Made a Difference.” The evening will feature Johanna Ely, Benicia’s poet laureate; Diana Lang, Vallejo’s poet laureate; and Genea Brice, Lang’s predecessor […]
Photo: Poets’ minds at work
California poet laureate coming to Benicia
Cementing Benicia’s status as a poetry friendly town, California Poet Laureate Dana Gioia will be coming to Benicia on April 18 to perform some of his poetry. Gioia was born in Hawthorne and graduated from Stanford University, where he edited Stanford’s literary journal Sequoia Magazine. After graduating from business school in 1977, he worked at […]
Poetry Corner: Johanna Ely “View from the Benicia Depot”
Standing on the wooden platform of this old fashioned train depot, I remember how I once waited impatiently for trains to take me away, waited in stations as long as football stadiums, New York, Paris, Tokyo, waited eagerly to travel on trains whose wheels clicked and clacked to the edge of a new world. Now […]
Poetry Corner: Johanna Ely “Never Wear Glasses”
(Dedicated to Joel Fallon) You told me to always make eye contact with my audience, to blow up the print of my poems to a font size of 14. Never wear glasses, you advised, or drink water while you read. No distractions, you said. You told me I wrote good poetry, but that the word […]
Johanna Ely: The Gift
Unwrap this precious day attentively, smooth out every star-shaped dazzling leaf that lays itself against the painted sky and languid, catches sunlight on its face. Then gently unfold each velvet petal of the scarlet rose who sticks its head so curious and aware, through slats of garden fence. Let violet agapanthus come undone, long tangled […]
Johanna Ely becomes Benicia’s sixth poet laureate
After months of searching, a new poet laureate for the city of Benicia has been named. For the next two years, Johanna Ely will be the city’s sixth poet laureate, succeeding Don Peery. The office of the poet laureate was established by Benicia Public Library’s Board of Trustees in 2005 to place an emphasis […]
‘Poem homes’ remain in Benicia — for now
■ Poets fight back after vandals put future of program in doubt A public poetry program that lets people take home copies of locally composed verse will continue in Benicia, despite problems with vandalism to some of the containers that hold the compositions. The “poem homes” were started locally in 2010 by Ronna Leon, then […]