Monday Must Read! Lesléa Newman, I Carry My Mother

This week meet Lesléa Newman, the author of 70 books for readers of all ages including the poetry collections, Still Life with Buddy, Nobody’s Mother, and Signs of Love. In 2012, her novel-in-verse, October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard, received a Stonewall Honor from the American Library Association and was named a “Must Read” title by the Massachusetts Center for the Book. Ms. Newman has won many literary awards including poetry fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Massachusetts Artists Foundation; the Burning Bush Poetry Prize; the Americus Review poetry prize, and second place runner-up in the Solstice Literary Journal poetry competition. Her poetry has been published in Spoon River Poetry Review, Cimarron Review, Columbia: A Journal of Literature and Art, Evergreen Chronicles, Moment Magazine, Harvard Gay and Lesbian Review, Lilith Magazine, Kalliope, The Sun, Bark Magazine, Sow’s Ear Poetry Review,  Seventeen Magazine and others. Nine of her books have been Lambda Literary Award Finalists and she has received four Pushcart Prize nominations. From 2008-2010 she served as the poet laureate of Northampton, Massachusetts. Currently she is a faculty member of Spalding University’s low-residency MFA in Writing program. Her newest poetry collection, I Carry My Mother was published in January 2015 by Headmistress Press.

Lesléa’s website: http://www.lesleanewman.com/newbks.htm

Buy Lesléa Newman’s latest poetry book, I Carry My Mother:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0692277056/leslenewmawrite/

Buy Lesléa Newman’s novel-in-verse, October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0763658073/leslenewmawrite/

Poetry by Lesléa Newman:

“How to Watch Your Father Watch Your Mother Die”

http://www.masspoetry.org/poemofthemoment4/#pomnewman

“Looking at Her”

http://www.lavrev.net/2014/12/leslea-newman.html

“I Carry My Mother”

http://autumnskypoetrydaily.com/2015/06/12/i-carry-my-mother-by-leslea-newman/

“Teen Angels”

http://gottabook.blogspot.com/2013/04/leslea-newman-teen-angels.html

Interviews

“Getting to Know Lesléa Newman and her new book, I Carry My Mother

http://www.masspoetry.org/newbooknewman/

“Poet to Poet: Jane Yolen interviews Lesléa Newman”

http://poetryforchildren.blogspot.com/2015/01/poet-to-poet-jane-yolen-and-leslea.html

“On Poetry, Mentoring, and Writing for Adults and Teens”

http://scbwi.blogspot.com/2015/03/leslea-newman-on-poetry-mentoring-and.html

“It’s My Job To Use My Imagination: Writing October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard”

http://www.recorder.com/home/11350058-95/its-my-job-to-imagine

Articles:

“Formally Yours: The Joys of Writing Formal Verse”

http://www.spaldingmfablog.org/?p=318

“Writing October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard: An 11 Year Journey”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leslea-newman/october-mourning-a-song-for-matthew-shepard_b_1909595.html

“Dear Professor H.”

http://passagesnorth.com/2014/10/writers-on-writing-95-leslea-newman/

“Allen, Adieu: A Tribute to Allen Ginsberg”

http://www.lesleanewman.com/allen_adieu.html

Happy Reading!

xo

Mary