poets, american

A literary tour de force about the making of a film and representation from a master of the memoir form. For Nick Flynn, that game we all play?the who-would-play-you-in-the-movie-of-your-life game?has been resolved. The Reenactments chronicles the surreal experience of being on set during the making of the film Being Flynn, from his best-selling memoir Another Bullshit Night in Suck City, and watching the central events of his life reenacted: his father's long run of homelessness and his mother's suicide. Flynn tells the story of Robert De Niro's first meeting with his real father in Boston and of watching Julianne Moore attempt to throw herself into the sea. The result is a mesmerizingly sharp-edged and kaleidoscopic literary tour de force as well as a compelling argument about consciousness, representation, and grief.

Alphabetically arranged entries profile sixty-two contemporary gay American poets and dramatists, providing a brief biography, discussion of major works and themes, and an overview of the author's critical reception for each entry.

Documents the life of African-American poet Langston Hughes, discussing his contributions to society, the events and beliefs that shaped his life and work, and his literary accomplishments.

The author recalls the year when his farm worker parents settled down in the city so that he could go to school for the first time.

Presents the story of Emma Lazarus who, despite her life of privilege, became a tireless advocate for the immigrants who arrived in New York City in the 1880s and wrote a famous poem for the Statue of Liberty.

Excerpts from the journals of Sylvia Plath, from her student years at Smith College through her marriage to Ted Hughes.