Joe Wenderoth and Karen Holmberg

On the 1/10/24 edition of Dr. Andy’s Poetry and Technology Hour:

Dr. Andy begins the episode with the poem “Elegy” by Aracelis Girmay in remembrance of Natalie Corona, the late Davis police officer who died five years ago in the line of duty. Leonard Cohen’s song “Democracy,” which doubles as spoken word, follows Corona’s memorial, as well as a recorded reading by Robert Creeley of his poem, “The Long Road.” A reading of “Tours” by C.D Wright and “Gift” by Czesław Miłosz is also shared. “Romeo had Juliette” by Lou Reed plays prior to Joe Wenderoth’s appearance on the podcast. Wenderoth divulges his potential relocation to Texas after retirement and his affinity for waterfront properties. Alongside the relocation, he plans to complete his book in the works titled Agony and to use Andy Griffith show episodes to craft generative poetry. He then reads a poem called “Light the Arrows.” Karen Holmberg is the next guest, and she discusses the origins of her poem “At the Preserve.” She then reads the poem, which is about a moment shared with her mother and the elusiveness of perfection. Holmberg closes out the episode by reading a poem about her daughter Lilly.

Joe Wenderoth is a writer, performer, musician, professor, and film-maker. He has published six books: four books of poetry, an epistolary novel, and a book of essays.. Joe Wenderoth has been teaching for the Department of English at UC Davis since 2003. This will be his last reading in Davis.

Wenderoth’s work is widely anthologized, and has been published in collections and periodicals such as Best American Poetry 2007, Best American Essays 2008, Poetry 180, The Next American Essay, The Best American Prose Poems: From Poe To Present, The Body Electric, The New American Poets: A Bread Loaf Anthology, Harper’s, The Nation, The Anchor Book of New American Short Stories, and American Poetry: Next Generation.

Joe Wenderoth has mentored a generation of UC Davis poets. He will be missed.

Karen Holmberg has published two poetry collections, The Perseids and Axis Mundi. In addition to poetry, she publishes lyric essays and art criticism, and her first young adult novel, The Collagist, won the 2021 Acheven Prize and will be published by Regal Press/Fitzroy Editions in the spring of 2024. She teaches British Literature, poetry writing, and letterpress printing at Oregon State University, where she is a faculty member in the MFA Program in Creative Writing.

The Poetry Night Reading Series is excited to present Joe Wenderoth and Spencer Rico at 7 PM on Thursday, January 18th, 2024, in the John Natsoulas Gallery, 521 1st Street in Davis. 

Find out more about Dr. Andy's Poetry Night Reading Series in Davis, California by visiting http://www.poetryindavis.com. Invite your friends to sign up for the mailing list. To learn more about Dr. Andy’s tiny media fiefdom, visit his weekly newsletter at https://andyjones.substack.com and follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/andyojones.