WSU sets poetry reading on North Richland campus

The spring WSU Tri-Cities Reading Series will feature one of the state’s premier poets, Sam Hamill, on Friday, April 7 at 8 p.m. in the East Building Auditorium on the north Richland campus. The event is free and open to the public.

The author of more than 14 books of poetry and translations, Hamill has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Guggenheim Foundation, the Lila Wallace-Readers Digest Fund and two Washington Governor’s Arts Awards.

The WSU Reading Series features Washington State poets and fiction writers twice a year – fall and spring. Professor Joddy Murray, who coordinates the events said, “We are committed to making these evenings as community-focused as possible by selecting writers from both inside and outside the academic world. And we provide the opportunity for community members to read their own work during the open mic portion of the event.”

Hamill’s most recent books are “Almost Paradise: New & Selected Poems & Translations” (2005) and “Tao Te Ching: A New Translation” (2005), both from Shambhala Publications. He is the author of 13 previous volumes of poetry including “Dumb Luck” (2002), “Gratitude” (1998) and “Destination Zero: Poems 1970-1995” (1995), which won a Pushcart Prize; three collections of essays; and two dozen volumes translated from ancient Greek, Latin, Estonian, Japanese and Chinese.

Hamill taught in prisons for 14 years, in artist-in-residency programs for 20 years and has worked extensively with battered woman and children. He is also the founding editor of Copper Canyon Press.