| Rita Dove (b. 1952) was encouraged by her parents to read widely from a young age and she explored all that the local library in Akron, Ohio, had to offer. She went on to study at Miami University, Ohio and was a Fulbright Scholar at Tubingen in Germany before joining the renowned University of Iowa Writers' Workshop.
Dove's first collection, The Yellow House on the Corner appeared in 1980. Seven years later, her third collection, Thomas and Beulah, won the Pulitzer Prize. In 1993 she became the American Poet Laureate, making her both the youngest recipient of this honour and the first African-American Laureate.
Dove is an inspirational figure for African-Americans and for women, and her own work reflects these two important facets of her life, featuring many iconic names including Billie Holiday, Rosa Parks and Hattie McDaniel. However, she is as much interested in what she calls "the underside of history", exploring the quiet lives of those who are omitted from the official record.
1 Ö 1.29
2 Shakespeare Say 2.03
3 Parsley 4.40
4 The Event 1.46
5 Courtship, Diligence 0.56
6 Straw Hat 1.34
7 Dusting 1.29
8 Roast Possum 2.30
9 The Oriental Ballerina 2.42
10 After Reading Mickey in the Night Kitchen for the Third Time Before
Bed 1.44
11 Canary 1.13
12 The Island Women of Paris 1.10
13 The Bistro Styx 4.37
14 Demeter's Prayer to Hades 0.52
15 Persephone Falling 1.01
16 Lost Brilliance 2.06
17 Maple Valley Branch Library, 1967 3.07
18 Freedom Ride 1.44
19 The Enactment 1.50
20 Rosa 0.42
21 All Souls' 1.32
22 American Smooth 1.21
23 Fox Trot Fridays 0.39
24 Meditation at 50 Yards, Moving Target 3.13
25 The Castle Walk 3.39
26 The Return of Lieutenant James Reese Europe 2.19
27 The Seven Veils of Salomé 4.31
28 Chocolate 0.42
29 Hattie McDaniel Arrives at the Coconut Grove 3.57
Total length of the recording 61.00
This item is currently available.
|
