Written by Elsa Kim, Creative Writing major Sumita Chakraborty—essayist, scholar, and author of Arrow—strode to the podium. Setting down her sheaves of notes, she held up her phone. “I’ve set a duck noise timer,” she told us with a smile, “When the duck quacks I know I’ve run out of time.” Having introduced us to …
Continue reading “An Act of Remembrance: Visiting Writers Sumita Chakraborty and Noé Alvarez”
Written by Anna Snader, a freshman at Hope studying Social Studies Education with an interest in English Accompanied by soft piano music and the warm lights of Winants Auditorium, Michael X. Wang and Melissa Valentine read us their stories for the 40th anniversary of The Jack Ridl Visiting Writers Series. First, we heard from Michael …
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Written by Piper Daleiden, Hope College English and Psychology Major, Student Managing Editor for the English Department As part of the NEA Little Read Lakeshore, Matt de la Peña visited Hope College, where he spoke in classes, presented to elementary school children from the area, and finished with a keynote speech. De la Peña is …
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[Editor’s note: Thanks to JRVWS intern Claire Buck for this post.] As winter ices the sidewalks and coats the campus in snow, it’s the perfect time to come in from the cold and gather around good literature. This semester’s Jack Ridl Visiting Writers Series promises community, conversation, and a lineup of diverse and talented authors …
Continue reading “JRVWS Preview: Guadalupe Garcia McCall and Marcel “Fable the Poet” Price”
By VWS Intern Claire Buck (’22) The days are getting shorter, the tests are piling up, and everyone around me is becoming increasingly dependent on caffeine to power through the day. You can feel it in the air: we’re approaching the finish line of the fall semester. Before classes wrap up, though, we’ve got one …
By Bill Moreau Why do we do the Big Read? According to the National Endowment for the Arts, “The NEA Big Read broadens our understanding of our world, our communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book. Showcasing a diverse range of themes, voices, and perspectives, the NEA Big Read aims to …
Continue reading “Big Read Lakeshore 2021: Joy Harjo, United States Poet Laureate”
2007 Alumnae Kristin Brace is a poet and author of two chapbooks and a full-length collection. Her most recent publication, Toward the Wild Abundance, was selected for the 2018 Wheelbarrow Books Poetry Prize. Her work draws inspiration from nature, visual art, family history, dreams and memory. She lives in West Michigan, and references to the region appear frequently …
Continue reading “Hope Alum and Visiting Writer Kristin Brace: “Pay Attention. Look Closer.””
Shea Tuttle is the author of Exactly as You Are: The Life and Faith of Mister Rogers and co-editor of Can I Get a Witness? Thirteen Peacemakers, Community Builders, and Agitators for Faith and Justice. Her essays have appeared at Greater Good Magazine, The Toast, The Other Journal, Role Reboot and Jenny. She is a …
Continue reading “Hope Alum and Visiting Writer Shea Tuttle: “Poetry Might Save You.””
English Department alumnus Matthew Baker (2009) is still on a roll. His new story collection, Why Visit America, was named one of Esquire‘s “20 Must-Read Books of Summer 2020” and received a starred review from Booklist, which wrote: “Bold, captivating, and deeply relevant, Baker’s imaginative stories offer approachable, optimistic perspectives on morally ambiguous topics facing …
Continue reading “Alumnus Highlight: “Why Visit America” author Matthew Baker (’09)”
As Marcelo Hernandez Castillo dug through the photo gallery on his phone, searching for a picture of his son, I realized that the thin man who sat before me didn’t quite match my idea of the poet I had envisioned behind Cenzontle. The beautiful and surreal lyrics Castillo weaved through his 2018 book had prepared …
