BY BIANCA SPRIGGS
In the midst of all the fanfare surrounding WEG, I daresay that this is the perfect opportunity to remind folks that for many, the Bluegrass isn’t just the Horse Capital of the World, but also the Literary Capital of the World!
Last evening, for example, well over a hundred people gathered in the Stuart Room of the Carnegie Center for Born and Bred, a showcase of the Affrilachian Poets and Holler Poets Series, two writing groups born in Kentucky with an enduring tradition of breeding strong writers and appreciative audiences.
Anyone among the throng of audience members can attest to this very special, high-spirited affair which marked the occasion of celebrating the AP’s closing in on their twentieth year anniversary as a writing collective and Holler ringing in its 29th installment tonight, September 29.
With live music from the Swells and mason jars full of lemonade and Ale-8 for all, the evening turned into a spangled spectrum of voices with co-hosts, Yours Truly and Holler creator, programmer, and host, Eric Sutherland, and a total of seven featured poets: Sunny Montgomery, Jeremy Paden, Whitney Baker, Keith Wilson, Katerina Stoykova-Klemer, Mitchell L.H. Douglas, and Richard Taylor. People certainly left full with more than just the grub, and if they happened to visit the Morris Book Shop table, they might have left with a few new titles to add to their library as well.
If you missed last night or were there and want to come back for more, the Carnegie Center (which I occasionally like to refer to as the “Mothership”), a recipient of the 2009 MetLife Innovative Space award, will reprise the evening of literature for its Kentucky’s Finest reading featuring acclaimed Kentucky authors, Kim Edwards, Silas House, Erik Reece, and Frank X Walker on Tuesday, October 5 at 6 PM. This is also a come one, come all, free event.
If you just can’t wait for next week, then tonight (September 29) is the regularly scheduled Holler Poets Series event at Al’s Bar on the corner of Sixth and Limestone.
The feature poets this month are Eric Wilkinson and Chris Mattingly with music by Sarah Elizabeth Burkey who will also perform during WEG. The renowned twenty-slot open mic fills up fast, so get there before things get started at 8 PM, if you’d like to sign up.
This event is always free and always a good time! Come on down, get you a bourbon, some sweet tater fries, and pull up a chair!
Carnegie Center will host “Kentucky’s Finest” on Tuesday, October 5. Readings by KIM EDWARDS, SILAS HOUSE, FRANK X WALKER and ERIK REECE, 6:00 pm. FREE
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
Erik Reece on Lexington in Garden and Gun Magazine
