Written by Brenda Nicholas


Today I’m wearing my poet pusher hat in honor of the great poem pusher, Robert Pinsky.

In 1997, shortly after he was named Poet Laureate, Pinsky founded the Favorite Poem Project, as an effort to stimulate interest in poetry among the general American public. This extensive project includes videos, books, cds, and readings, featuring individuals from around the country reading and discussing their favorite poems.

Because of his dedication to the art, it seems only appropriate to feature his latest book of poetry “Gulf Music,” described as an accessible collection of poems—the kind that would appeal to the general public. In his New York Times review, Joel Brouwer says “Pinsky is our finest living specimen of this sadly rare breed, and the poems of “Gulf Music” are among the best examples we have of poetry’s ability to illuminate not only who we are as humans, but who we are –and can be—as a nation.”

As accessible as his poetry may be, Pinsky continues to be dowsed with praise within the Academy, where he has earned honors and awards from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, Poetry Magazine’s Oscar Blumenthal prize, the Poetry Society of America’s William Carlos Williams Award, and a Guggenheim Foundation fellowship.
Gulf Music: Poems , by Robert Pinsky