The Ravens Revisited

The Raven Poetry Circle at The New-York Historical Society

Throughout the Great Depression, the Raven Poetry Circle sold poems in Washington Square Park and hosted readings in their apartments.

In honor of that band of scrappy poets, we’ve put together a virtual reading with writers from around the country.

You can watch the first installment below, and you can sign up for the next reading on Sunday, May 17, 2020, from 5-7 PM Pacific (8-10 Eastern). 

While the name included the word “poetry,” all kinds of writing were welcome. Here’s the line-up for the first reading. If you want to participate, you can sign-up for the next Raven Poetry Circle Reading.

Robin Sloan read a brief appreciation of a writer and a post that meant a lot to him. Robin is a fiction writer in California, author of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore and Sourdough. 2:40

Debora Kuan read new poems. Debora is a poet living in Connecticut, the author of Lunch Portraits and Xing. 8:50

Marc Eliot Stein read a poem. Once known as the literary blogger Levi Asher, Marc is currently director of technology for World Beyond War, a nonprofit, and continues to run Literary Kicks as well as a couple of podcasts. He lives in Brooklyn. 22:02

Susie DeFord read two poems. Susie is the author of the poetry collection Dogs of Brooklyn. She lives in Catskill, NY. 31:45

James Renner read from his novel in progress, Violet Eyes. James is the author of several books, including the novel, The Man from Primrose Lane and the true crime-memoir, True Crime Addict. 41:50

Cory Nakasue read some poems. Cory is a poet, astrologer, and somatic therapist working on her first chapbook. 53:47

Ernesto Cisneros read some of his writing. He is the author of Efrén Divided, born and raised in Santa Ana, California, where he still teaches. 1:01:55 

Do you want to join the next Raven Poetry Circle reading?

Sign up to read next time with this simple form!