Poetry trinity orates afield

Local poets to read new works at Wilderbee Farms

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Poetry while picnicking beside a field of flowers. Could there be a more literary way to spend a Sunday afternoon?

Just such an idyl will take place at Wilderbee Farms at 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 21 with local poets Pam Dionne, Lauren Davis, and Kathryn Hunt reading from their new books.

“I felt compelled to say something that could only be said in poetry,” Hunt said of why she put pen to paper for her newest work which she’ll be reading from, “Seed Wheel,”  soon to arrive from Lost Horse Press.

The themes for Hunt’s new book touch upon family and the fragility and preciousness of the earth.

“A poem is a given thing … poems drift down from the sky or something, they drift through the leaves,” she said of her inspiration.

When asked to describe the work of her fellow poets, Hunt noted Davis’s use of poetry to explore the unexpected, the difficult, and the strange in her new book “Home Beneath the Church” from Fernwood Press.

“She takes up issues around female sexuality in a way that I haven’t seen before,” Hunt added.

Dionne will be reading from her two newest chapbooks, “Paradox & Illusion,” and “Taut Caesuras,” both from Finishing Line Press, as well as a few new unpublished pieces on the edge of para-surrealism.

“In my version, there is a line that can be followed. It’s not all just images that don’t relate,” Dionne said of these latest experiments.

While Hunt and Davis write their work mostly in the open expanse of free verse, Dionne more often frolics through forms.

“I’ve been called the form queen, and I do love form,” she said.

Of course, love goes in every direction between these three poets.

“I’m so grateful to read beside Kathryn and Pam. Their work represents such a broad range of the human spirit,” Davis said.

Attendees are encouraged to bring a blanket or chair to enjoy the fields of flowers from and perhaps pick a little lavender which is known for its ability to calm the nervous system, lift the mood, and even lower blood pressure.

Works by all three authors will be available at the reading and can also be found at Imprint Bookstore in downtown Port Townsend.