Poems From Cave Canem: Colleen J McElroy, Caught in The Crosswalk
by Joshua Barnes / July 21, 2011 / No comments
In this video from 2010’s Cave Canem reading, poet and Cave Canem fellow Colleen J McElroy reads four of her poems: “Military Woman Evolution,” “R & R,” “Fairytales,” and “Caught in the Crosswalk.”
The author of nine collections of poetry and the winner of the 2008 PEN/Oakland award, McElroy has also written several nonfiction works, including Over the Lip of the World: Among the Storytellers of Madagascar. Her awards include grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, a Rockefeller Fellowship, and a Fulbright Creative Writing Fellowship.
In an interview with Sampsonia Way McElroy said, “[The poem] is a balance of silence and sound. Once you get that rhythmical quality in it, it becomes very hypnotic.” This exclusive video from City of Asylum/Pittsburgh presents a rare opportunity to hear the music behind McElroy’s words as she hears it, and reads it to us.
Read Sampsonia Way’s interview with Colleen McElroy.
See highlights from this year’s Cave Canem reading.
See highlights from last year’s Cave Canem reading.
Read an interview with Cave Canem co-founder Toi Derricotte.
Read an interview with Cave Canem co-founder Cornelius Eady.
