Poetry After 9/11

Book excerpt: This important and inspiring collection is a sweeping overview of poetry written in New York in the year after the 9/11 attacks . . . This anthology contains poems by forty-five of the most important poets of the day, as well as some of the literary world’s most dynamic young voices, all writing in New York City in the year immediately following the World Trade Center attacks. It was inspired by the editors' observation that after the tragic events of September 11th, 2001, poetry was being posted everywhere in New York—on telephone poles, on warehouse walls, on bus shelters, in the letters-to-the-editor section of newspapers ... New Yorkers spontaneously turned to poetry to understand and cope with the tragedy of the attack. Full of humor, love, rage and fear, this diverse collection of poems attests to that power of poetry to express and to heal the human spirit. Featuring poems by Pulitzer Prize winner Stephen Dunn; Best American Poetry series editor David Lehman; National Book Award winner and New York State Poet Jean Valentine; the first ever Nuyorican Slam-Poetry champ; poets laureate of Brooklyn and Queens; and a poem and introduction by National Book Award finalist Alicia Ostriker.