Portland's Betsy Sholl Releases New Book of Poetry
July 7, 2004
Anyone familiar with the Portland Public Market will relate
to the opening poem about lobsters surviving in the market's
tanks in Betsy Sholl's new collection of poetry, "Late Psalm."
(Read the poem at http://www.bpj.org/shollmarket.htm.)
"Late Psalm" takes the themes of ancient songs of joy and
grief and transposes them into the language of contemporary
life. The human figures in these poems are walking city streets,
gazing into lobster tanks, jogging shore roads, and learning
how faith and doubt are inseparable. Themes of social justice
are threaded through the book, along with an interest in the
sources and improvisations of jazz.
Sholl, a resident of Portland, teaches at the University
of Southern Maine, in the Vermont College MFA Program, and
is the author of six books of poetry. "Don't Explain," won
the 1997 Felix Pollak Prize from the University of Wisconsin.
She has published poems in numerous journals, is a recipient
of a NEA Fellowship and a Maine State Writers' Grant.
Editor's Note: A preview copy of the book is available
by contacting Judie O'Malley, USM Public Affairs, 780-4200,omalley@usm.maine.edu.
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