Top of page
Posted by: Robert Casper
The following is a guest post by Denise Gallo, supervisory librarian for the Acquisition And Processing Section, Music Division at the Library of Congress. Until I turned to musicology in the late 1990s, I taught college English. Most semesters, I was constrained to read (and correct) sentence fragments and make sure my students didn’t dangle …
Posted in: Uncategorized
Posted by: Peter Armenti
To mark the beginning of Women’s History Month, which follows on the heels of African American History Month, From the Catbird Seat would like to recognize Phillis Wheatley’s major impact on both literary history and women’s history. In 1773, Wheatley became the first African American woman to publish a book. Wheatley’s book, a volume of …
Posted in: Collections, Digital Resources
Posted by: Peter Armenti
In a recent post I discussed the history of the U.S. poet laureateship. What I didn’t mention, however, is that the job title “Poet Laureate” isn’t restricted to this national position: many U.S. states, counties, cities, and other jurisdictions have created analogous Poet Laureate positions at the local level. In fact, more than twenty years …
Posted in: Poets Laureate
Posted by: Robert Casper
The following is a guest post by Bryan Koen, graduate research assistant for the Poetry and Literature Center at the Library of Congress. The Poetry and Literature Center congratulates former Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry Rita Dove, to whom President Obama awarded the National Medal of Arts on Monday, February 13. At the White House …
Posted in: News and Events
Posted by: Peter Armenti
From the Catbird Seat decided to combine our celebrations of Valentine’s Day and Presidents’ Day—not an easy thing to do!—by highlighting the youthful poetic efforts of George Washington. Yes, well before Washington was Commander in Chief of the Continental Army or President of the United States, he was just another teenage boy who turned to …
Posted in: Collections, Digital Resources
Posted by: Peter Armenti
On August 10, 2011, Philip Levine was appointed the 18th Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. As the current U.S. Poet Laureate, Levine now occupies one of the best known literary positions in the country. Yet despite its high public profile, there are many aspects of the laureateship that remain unclear, …
Posted in: Poets Laureate
Posted by: Robert Casper
The following is a guest post by Caitlin Rizzo, staffer for the Poetry and Literature Center at the Library of Congress. Last Wednesday marked what would have been the 110th birthday of beloved American poet Langston Hughes. In celebration of this milestone, the Manuscript Division and the Poetry and Literature Center co-hosted a Literary Birthday …
Posted in: Guest Posts, News and Events
Posted by: Robert Casper
The following is a guest post by Roberta Shaffer, associate librarian for Library Services at the Library of Congress. Each day in my adult life I am reminded, if not rejuvenated, by childhood rituals that I continue to practice—one of which is my “required daily allowance” of poetry. The need for poetry in my everyday …
Posted in: Guest Posts
Posted by: Robert Casper
The following is a guest post by Abby Yochelson, English and American Literature Reference specialist at the Library of Congress’s Main Reading Room, Humanities and Social Sciences Division. As Rob Casper and Peter Armenti have introduced themselves in previous blogs, I’ll try to tell you a little about myself here. My name is Abby Yochelson, …
Posted in: Ask a Librarian