BOOKS THAT CHANGED OUR LIVES The BeZine is open for submissions: one or two paragraphs on a book that changed your life and why. Please include a brief bio. DEADLINE May 12 bardogroup@gmail.com
WORDS DANCE PUBLISHING (I really like this one!) “artfully & carefully wrangles words that were born to dance wildly in the heart-mind matrix. Rich, edgy, raw, emotionally-charged energy balled up & waiting to whip your eyes wild; we rally together words that were written to make your heart go boom right before they slay your mind. We like Poems …” and they invite submissions. DETAILS HERE
EVENT
NEW DELHI, LITERARY AISLE & ARTISTS FOR CAUSE, MAY 15, 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. Anathm Mind Studio
‘Artists for Cause’ at Literary Aisle, present a wonderful literary evening of spoken word poetry. Get ready to be mesmerised by words and verse. The featured poets for the evening are:
1. Dr. Ravi Dhar – A Senior management professional and one who appreciates the beauty of life in its lyrical seasons of action and stillness.
2 Dr Sakshi Chanana*- Founder, Literary Aisle and Poetess- Webs of Light
3. Raghavendra Madhu- Founder, Poetry Couture
4. Hemant Vijh- A Poetry enthusiast and writer.
There are few open mic slots avaialble. Those interested may write to us ASAP. There is a nominal registration fee of Rs 100/ per person and the collected amount would be used for the cause of helping some poor children.
Dr Sakshi Chanana is one of the founder members of’ ‘Literary Aisle,’ in Delhi, which promotes a culture of reading and writing. Her poetry anthology is Webs of Light. Her poems have appeared in online journals like Muse India, Kritya, Tajmahal Review and A Few Lines Magazine. She works as an Assistant Professor of English in Delhi. Look for her in the May issue of The BeZine.
My role in society, or any artist or poet’s role, is to try and express what we all feel. Not to tell people how to feel. Not as a preacher, not as a leader, but as a reflection of us all. John Lennon
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It’s nothing new for poets to write poems against war, to write poems to raise the general consciousness of injustice, to express their pain and to speak truth to power. What is relatively new is the use of technology and social media to make it easy for poets to come together in protest as we see now with 100,000 Poets for Change (100TPC). In 2011, Michael Rothenberg, cofounder of 100TPC, put out a call for poets on Facebook and just five years later we have a huge global movement and a thriving community of poets and other creatives to stand up for peace, social justice and sustainability.
On the eve of the Iraqi War, poet Sam Hamill received an invitation from Laura Bush to attend a White House literary salon to celebrate the works of Emily Dickinson, Langston Hughes and Walt Whitman. Hamill had just read about President Bush’s plan for the invasion and saturation bombing of Iraq that would kill innumerable civilians, a plan that did not rule out the possibility of using nuclear weapons. Hamill felt he couldn’t sit restrained among politicians and poetic aristocracy. He had to speak out. He contacted colleagues, asking them to join with him in using this event to make a stand for peace.
Poetry readings were scheduled outside the White House and across the country on February 12, the day the event was scheduled. A website was started to collect and display antiwar poetry. Such prominent poets as Rita Dove, Peter Levitt, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, W.S. Merwin and Adrienne Rich contributed work. Their poems and many others were collected in a print volume. Contributions for the webstie continued to flow in for several years. The poems were screened by a team before publication. I contributed two, which were my first anti-war poems. Ultimately I think some 5,000 poems were collected. The poems are now archived in a university library.
We all know that Poets Against the War didn’t stop the invasion. Poet, peace activist and Jesuit priest, Daniel Berrigan wrote, “One is called to live nonviolently, even if the change one works for seems impossible.” So too are we called to speak truth to power, ignorance and cruelty no matter how hopeless things seem and no matter that we may never see the fruits of our labors in our lifetime. Peace has to start somewhere and it might just as well start with us.
If you are viewing this post from email, you’ll have to click through to the site to see the video.
Do not stand by my grave and weep.
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond’s glint on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripening grain.
I am the gentle autumn’s rain.
When you awaken in the morning’s hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry;
I am not there. I did not die. – Mary Elizabeth Frye (1905-2004), Poem 1932
That lovely poem (often wrongly attributed to Native American origin and tradition) reads like a prayer or a hymn. This is not surprising since true prayer and true poetry both come from Sacred Space. It was recited this past Saturday as we celebrated the inspiring life of a dear friend who left his body shortly before his seventieth birthday and his twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. He was a nature lover and we approprately celebrated his life out-of-doors at the Hanoke Japanese Gardens. Our friend died of chronic leukemia.
Throughout the fifteen years our friend lived with dying, there was nary a complaint. Even in dying he was true to his core value, thinking of – loving – others. Among his last sentiments was the hope – the encouragement – that the lessons we’d take from his life were to live with equanimity and to live hugely, kindly and consciously.
Also read at his Celebration of Life were St. Francis’ Prayer and The Buddhist Metta (Loving Kindness) Sutra (guidance), which was written in similiar spirit as St. Francis’ Prayer.
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace;
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive,
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
And it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.
Amen.
– St. Francis of Assisi
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Like many of us today, our friend combined the wisdom of several traditions to create a spiritual life that worked well for him. Raised a Catholic he took seriously the injunctions in St. Francis’ Prayer. He also valued the similar life philosophies of oneness, stewardship, non-attachment and respect for silence found in Buddhist scripture and practice and in Native American spirituality. His daily practice was Buddhist for Buddhism is indeed the master of meditative technology.
In memory of B.K.S. xo
May all sentient beings find peace.
If you are viewing this in an email, you will have to link through to the site to enjoy this beautiful and peaceful video with a Metta chant put to music. It’s sung in Pali but offers English subtitles.
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The London Book Fair 2016. Few minutes before opening. Olympia, London UK
· French publisher Actes Sud wins Adult Trade Publisher
· Readings in Australia crowned Bookstore of the Year
· US and Chinese publishers lead the field with two awards each
· Sudan, Brazil, Poland and New Zealand also won awards
The winners of The London Book Fair International Excellence Awards, in association with The Publishers Association and sponsored by Hytex, announced at a prestigious awards ceremony held on the first day of LBF.
French publisher Actes Sud took home The Bookseller Adult Trade Publisher Award and was commended for its “depth and breadth of publishing, second-to-none design and production values, and a ground-breaking list”. The judges also praised its imprint Sindbad “which champions writing from the Arabic and Muslim worlds”.
In a new category for 2016, The Bookstore of the Year Award went to Melbourne-based Readings for “its community outreach, support of Australian authors and its help for non-profit organisations working on literacy initiatives”.
The US had another successful year at the awards, with two wins overall. Words Without Borders won The Publishers Weekly Literary Translation Initiative Award with judges reflecting that “literature in the translation sector is flourishing with momentum, passion and innovation”. In The Global Rights 365 Literary Agent Award category, New-York-basedThe Barbara J. Zitwer Agency, who had previously been nominated for The Outstanding Contribution Award 2014, took the crown and was praised for “for the grace and persistence of her dealings”.
China had a fantastic night and was awarded two highly coveted prizes. The BookBrunch Children’s and Young Adult Trade Publisher Award was presented to Jieli Publishing House Co. Ltd because of “its broad and inclusive approach” and its catalogue reflecting “the best of both home grown and international authors and books”. Meanwhile, China also won the Market Focus Achievement Award as accepted by government owned CNPIEC (China National Publications Import & Export).
Jacks Thomas, Director, The London Book Fair, said: “The awards represent the very best the publishing industry has to offer across the globe, and we were delighted to see winners from countries as far afield as Sudan, France, Poland, New Zealand and Brazil. For me, meeting and celebrating these publishers’ hard work, dedication and talent is such a fundamental part of the Book Fair. It is these inspiring companies and people around the world who make publishing such a special industry, that I am privileged to work in.”
Earls Court Exhibition Centre from Warwick Road SW5, near to Kensington, Kensington And Chelsea, Great Britain. During the 2009 London Book Fair
Stephen Lotinga, Chief Executive, The UK Publishers Association, said: “The International Excellence Awards provide an incredible opportunity to recognise achievements within the publishing industry globally. It showcases the wealth of cultural diversity driving the production of enriching works enjoyed by people worldwide. From France to New Zealand, from Sudan to China, the commitment and dedication demonstrated by the publishers has been none other than inspirational and it has been an honour to hear their stories and celebrate as part of the London Book Fair.”
The full list of this year’s International Excellence Awards winners is below:
· The Bookstore of the Year Award
o Readings (Australia)
· The Literary Festival Award
o Flupp (Brazil)
· The Publishers Weekly Literary Translation Initiative Award
o Words without Borders (US)
· The Knowledgespeak Academic and Professional Publisher Award
o Auckland University Press (New Zealand)
· The BookBrunch Children’s and Young Adult Trade Publisher Award
o Jieli Publishing House Co. Ltd (China)
· The Bookseller Adult Trade Publisher Award
o Actes Sud (France)
· The China Publishing & Media Journal Educational Learning Resources Award
o SuperMemo World sp. z o.o. (Poland)
· The Global Rights 365 Literary Agent Award
o The Barbara J. Zitwer Agency (US)
· The Education Initiatives Award
o United Nations – African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) (Sudan)
· The Market Focus Achievement Award
o Market Focus China (China)
· The Total Licensing IP Rights Across Media Award
o The Night Zookeeper (UK)
Also hosted on the night was a selection of awards held in association with The London Book Fair:
· The London Book Fair Simon Master Chairman’s Award
o Ernest Hecht
· The Quantum Publishing Innovation Award
o Reedsy
· The IPA Prix Voltaire 2016
o Raif Badawi (Saudi Arabia)
· The London Book Fair Trailblazer Awards
o George Burgess, Entrepreneur and Marketing Lead at Gojimo
o Clio Cornish, Executive Publisher at HarperCollins
o Nick Coveney, Head of Digital at Kings Road Publishing
o Ella Kahn, Co-Founder of DKW Literary Agency & Bryony Woods, Co-Founder of DKW Literary Agency
· The Association for Publishing Education Dissertation and Project Prizes
o Best Dissertation for a Postgraduate: Veronica Morgan, University College London
o Best Dissertation for an Undergraduate: Fiona Parker, Loughborough University (BA Publishing with English)
o Best Overall Project: Amy Ellis, Oxford Brookes University
· Accessible Books Consortium Award for Accessible Publishing: Initiative (Joint winner)
o Action on Disability Rights and Development (ADRAD) (Nepal)
o DK & the DK Braille Concept Development Team (UK)
· Accessible Books Consortium Award for Accessible Publishing: Publisher
o Elsevier B.V
· The London Book Fair Lifetime Achievement Award
o Gail, Baroness Rebuck, DBE, Chair of Penguin Random House, UK
The awards, which celebrate international excellence in the book industry, cover the whole scope of international publishing, including academic and scholarly publishing, children’s publishing, literary translation and digital innovation. In each award category the judging panel was made up of experts in that sector.
The awards were presented at The London Book Fair, London Olympia Conference Centre on Tuesday 12th April. The drinks reception was sponsored by UKTI.
Announcement courtesy of The London Book Fair; photo credits, 2016 (the first photograph) courtesy of Arielinson under CC BY-SA 4.0 license , 2009 (the second photograph) courtesy of R Sones under CC BY-SA 2.0 license
Thank you for sharing your love of words. Comments will appear after moderation.
On the eve of the Iraqi War, poet Sam Hamill received an invitation from Laura Bush to attend a White House literary salon to celebrate the works of Emily Dickinson, Langston Hughes and Walt Whitman. Hamill had just read about President Bush’s plan for the invasion and saturation bombing of Iraq that would kill innumerable civilians, a plan that did not rule out the possibility of using nuclear weapons. Hamill felt he couldn’t sit restrained among politicians and poetic aristocracy. He had to speak out. He contacted colleagues, asking them to join with him in using this event to make a stand for peace.
Jamie Dedes' THE POET BY DAY Webzine 