Saturday 4 May 2013

Great American Poems Evening at The Forum

On Tuesday 16th April 2013 I attended the Great American Poems evening at the 2nd Air Division Memorial Library at the Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library. This was a night of readings and presentations by scholars from the University of East Anglia. This was a free event for the poetry lovers of Norfolk.

The Memorial Library is a unique “living memorial” to nearly 7,000 young Americans in the 2nd Air Division of the US 8th Air Force who lost their lives during the Second World War. Located in the landmark Forum building in the centre of Norwich, the Library have a lending collection of over 4,000 books covering all aspects of American life and culture, and a specialist collection devoted to the history of the 2nd Air Division.

The wonderful poems chosen for the evening were ‘Safe in their alabaster chambers’ by Emily Dickinson, presented by Kate Anderson. ‘The Road Not Taken’ by Robert Frost, presented by Philip Wilson. ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock’ by T.S. Eliot, presented by Gareth Jones. ‘If We Must Die’ by Claude McKay, presented by Christopher Astwood and ‘I Am Vertical’ by Sylvia Plath, presented by Silvia Panizza.

This was an stimulating and interesting event at the 2nd Air Division Memorial Library which gave us a diverse selection of American poems to enjoy. Safe in their Alabaster Chambers, untouched by morning and untouched by noon. This is Emily Dickinson brilliance and my favourite poem of the five presented at The Forum.

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