Poetry Express | WERU 89.9 FM Blue Hill, Maine Local News and Public Affairs Archives

“In Defense of Wearing a Binder During a Pandemic” by Jan Bindas-Tenney About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“In Defense of Women Wearing High Heels in Action Movies” by Portland, ME Poet Laureate Maya Williams, read by the poet About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Unbound” by LaLa Drew read by the poet and written in response to “In the Warble Wall” by Jan Bindas-Tenney About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“In the Warble Wall” by Jan Bindas-Tenney read by the poet About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“You Are Not the Disposable Trash” by Maya Williams read by the poet and written in response to “Comfort Measure” by Cait Vaughan About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Comfort Measure” by Cait Vaughan read by the poet About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Unsetting Sun” by Cait Vaughan read by the poet and written in response to Samara Cole Doyon’s “My Boy” About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“My Boy” by Samara Cole Doyon read by the poet About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Prayer for the Dead” by Stuart Kestenbaum read by Alicia Brillant About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Maine Morning” by Celia Thaxter read by Hannah Patterson About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Witch Wife” by Edna St. Vincent Millay read by Mary?McColley? About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Healing” by Karin Spitfire read by Kristin Plummer? About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Transformation” by Emma Dawson Webb read by Alexa Barstow About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Home” by Ryan Nayhill read by the poet About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Hero’s Wrath Knows No Bounds” by Alicia Brillant read by the poet About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Open Season” by Katherine Hagopian Berry read by Cliftine Fortin About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“How to Draw a Map” by Patrick Hicks read by Carolyn Brady, Miss Maine 2019 & 2020 About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“While I Stand” by Hannah Patterson?read by the poet About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Picking Meat” by Mary McColley About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“On Leaving Home” by Gibson Fay-LeBlanc read by Melanie Beaulieu About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Box Full of Darkness” by Carol Willette Bachofner read by Michelle LeClair About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“Light Song” by Megan Grumbling read by Amanda Dettman About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“I Can’t Stop Saving My Father’s Voicemails” by Amanda Dettman read by the poet. About the host: Jan Bindas-Tenney is a trans non-binary and queer writer, reader, fighter, lover, friend and parent living on unceded Abenaki land. They hold an MFA in nonfiction from University of Arizona. Their writing has appeared in the opinion pages of Maine newspapers, in legislative testimony, as well as in Orion, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Arts & Letters, CutBank, the Maine Review, among other places. They work at the Maine Humanities Council where they curate a weekly poetry feature on WERU Community Radio called Poetry Express.

“The Iceberg Seven-Eighths Under” By Abbie Huston Evans Read by Jefferson Navicky

“Half-Ourselves Half-Not” by Colin Cheney read by Kristina Torres

“Bereavement Status” by Adrian Blevins read by Jefferson Navicky

“Limbo” by Robert Chute read by Gayla Sheldon

“Lady J” by Linda Doloff read by the poet

“Silent Noise” by Wendy Smith read by the author

“Untitled” by LaLa Drew read by Jan Bindas-Tenney

“Texture” by Kifah Abdulla read by the poet

“Fact Check” by Suzanne Langlois read by Jefferson Navicky

“Spring Pick-up” by Carl Little read by Kristen Hodak

“Dear ghosts, when I said all I ever wanted was land” by Julia Bouwsma read by Katharina Brooks

“Putting to Bed” by Marita O’Neill read by Jefferson Navicky

“How to See Deer” by Philip Booth read by Leslie Gregory

“The Champions” by Myronn Hardy read by Jefferson Navicky

“To a Garden Spider” by Leslie Moore read by Dana Legawiec

“Complaint of El Río Grande” for for Aylin Barbieri By Richard Blanco from his book How to Love a Country read by Eve Raimon

“I Would Like to Learn to Read” by Ellen Flewelling Holt read by Kimberly Smith

Katharina Brooks reading her original poem “Love”

“Last Poem With a Train In It” by Linda Aldrich read by Sara Valentine

“Chest Poem” by Jefferson Navicky read by Samaa Abdurraqib

“Spring” by Edna St. Vincent Millay read by Anthony Dolan Scott

“Cutler Coast” by Cait Vaughan read by Jan Bindas-Tenney

“Who Am I” by Kristina Torres, read by the poet.

Sara Valentine reading “Last Poem with a Train In It” by Linda Aldrich

Cait Vaughan reading “The Contest” by Samaa Abdurraqib

Diane Magras reading “Twilight” by Laine Kuehn

Georges Budagu Makoko reading “Instinct” by Marianne Murekatete

Barb Rehmeyer reading “And July” by Elizabeth Coatsworth

Lizz Sinclair reading “When the Turtles Called My Name” by Louis Sinclair

Diane Magras reading “The Abandoned Orchards of Maine” by Pam Smith

Lizz Sinclair reading “I Walk My Road at Dusk“ by Julia Bouwsma.

Samaa Abdurraqib reading “Untitled” by Cait Vaughan

Katie Moeller reading “Revel in Filth” by Maya Williams

Samaa Abdurraqib reading “Camp Song” by Jan Bindas-Tenney

Samaa Aburraqib’s poem “End of Land, Deer Isle” read by Maya Williams.

Zeina Azzam’s poem “Coronavirus Spring” read by Karen Myrick

“Homesick” by Alana Saleeby read by Samaa Abdurraqib

“Water/Nebi” by Cheryl Savageau read by Jan Bindas-Tenney

“Aren’t We All Brothers” by Sharif Elmusa read by Diane Magras

“Deep Winter” by Amy Belle Adams, read by David Banker

“Notes on Thoreau’s Maine Journals” by Paul Corrigan, read by Lisa Noyes

John Twomey reading “Potatoes” by Jay Davis

Eliot Fowler reading “Interview with the Dead” by Julia Bouwsma

Jackie Ascrizzi reading “Starting the Subaru at Five Below” by Stuart Kestenbaum

Genevieve Lysen reading “Red Sky” by Susann Pelletier

Jeff Hamm reading “Evening Song” by Steve Luttrell

Safiya Khalid reading “Prayer for a Far Away Mosque” by Safa Ali

Robert Nichols reading “A Spell Against Developers” by Gary Lawless

Nicola Chin reading “Breathing in the Rain” by Amira Al Sammrai

Paul McFarland reading “Nature” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Brenda Harrington reading “Coming Home” by Elizabeth Tibbets

Richard Hardgreaves reading “O! Hills of Strong!” by Julia Harris May

Leigh Norcott reading “Apple” by Betsy Sholl

Ellen Taylor reading her own poem “Just Beyond Hope”

Kathleen Ellis reading her own poem “No Such Luck”

Kimberly Cloutier-Green reading her own poem, “Pear”

Barbara Rehmeyer reading “Pearly Everlasting” by Linda Buckmaster

Judith Simpson reading “Artifact” by Mihku Paul

John Twomey reading “Ants” by Lynn Ascrizzi

Margaret “Peggy” Yocom reading her own poem, “Eating Alone”

Garth Robinson reading “The days in Old Penobscot Stream”, lumberjack ballad, Orono, ME 1916

Marian Fowler reading “On Selling Our House and Moving to Town” by Thomas Moore

Lauren Dodge reading “At the Grave of the Unknown River Driver” by Paul Corrigan

Sara Pendleton reading “The Maine Woods” by Dawn Potter

Deb Argast reading “Listening for Loons” by Gary Lawless, with loon calls by Lily Rebecca Mitchell

Jonathan Beal reading “Year After Year We Visited Alabama” by Crystal Williams

The poet Kathleen Ellis reading “When Windows” by Patricia Ranzoni