Poets & Poetry

As a prisoner of war in the "Hanoi Hilton," Air Force fighter pilot John Borling spent years composing and memorizing poetry that he tapped to fellow prisoners, like the future Sen. John McCain, using a special code.

Jonathan Reichert, professor emeritus at the State University of New York at Buffalo, has donated a rare collection of Robert Frost's letters, photographs and audio files to the school. The materials chronicle the decades-long friendship between the poet and Reichert's father, rabbi and poet Victor Reichert.

Richard Blanco became the fifth poet to read at the inauguration of a United States president.

Blanco, a first-generation Cuban-American, says he identifies with the theme of the inauguration: Our People, Our Future. He is the fifth poet to take part in a U.S. presidential inauguration, and also the youngest. He says being selected was a "great honor."

According to poet Kevin Young, the best poems are like the best meals — they're made from scratch. Young has edited a new collection of poems that celebrate the pleasures of food, from "butter disappearing into whipped sweet potatoes" to oysters that taste like "starlight."

Veterans Day — originally Armistice Day — was renamed in 1954 to include veterans who had fought in all wars. But the day of remembrance has its roots in World War I — Nov. 11, 1918 was the day the guns fell silent at the end of the Great War.

Each month, NPR's All Things Consideredinvites a poet into the newsroom to see how the show comes together, and to write an original poem about the news. This month, our NewsPoet is Philip Schultz.

Canadian poet and folk troubadour Leonard Cohen is known for writing haunting, provocative songs, songs about religion and women and politics. His music struck one Bay Area artist with a vision: that there should be a community choir of men, singing a cappella, exclusively from the Leonard Cohen songbook. Lisa Morehouse spent some time with the group, called the Conspiracy of Beards.

What do you do when, after 30 years, your husband tells you he is leaving you for someone else? If you're poet Sharon Olds, you grab your spiral-bound notebook and write about it.

Each month, NPR's All Things Considered invites a poet into the newsroom to see how the show comes together, and to write an original poem about the news. This month, our NewsPoet is Tess Taylor.