CARIBOU, Maine — Over a dozen folks attended Caribou Public Library’s first “Poetry Slam” on Tuesday, April 24, with several reading self-written works covering an array of subjects ranging from the humorous to the insightful and personal.
Erin Albers, children’s librarian at Caribou Public Library, was primarily responsible for orchestrating the poetry reading and said the idea came shortly after the success of the library’s recent limerick writing contest.
Erin Albers, children’s librarian at the Caribou Public Library, reads a poem from Chris Harris’ “I’m Just No Good at Rhyming: And Other Nonsense for Mischievous Kids and Immature Grown-Ups” during an April 24 poetry slam event. (Christopher Bouchard)
“We were told by several participants in the limerick contest that they enjoyed it, so we got our staff brains together and decided to do a poetry slam this month,” Albers said, “because April is poetry month.”
Albers said she currently is unsure if the poetry slam will become an annual event held every April, or if the library will decide to hold one every other month or a couple times a year. All those options are possibilities, she said.
In preparation for Tuesday’s event, Albers said she and library staff contacted the media ahead of time, placed fliers in the library, recreation center, and at a handful of other locations in Caribou.
“We knew we wanted to have refreshments,” she said, “and thought a microphone might be necessary, but everyone who participated tonight did a good job of projecting their voices.”
Compared to the limerick event, which had an attendance of 26, Albers said fewer came to the poetry reading, attributing this to the fact that awards were handed out at the former event.
Albers said 2018 has been a great year for the Caribou library, and that most events have had relatively high turnouts. Looking ahead, she said future ideas are “in our own brains at this point,” but that she and Library Director Anastasia Weigle are discussing the possibility of holding movie showings and hosting a karaoke night.
Albers kicked off the poetry slam by reading a couple selections from poems from Chris Harris’ “I’m Just No Good at Rhyming: And Other Nonsense for Mischievous Kids and Immature Grown-Ups.”
“This is a children’s book, because I’m the children’s librarian,” she said, “but it’s the best humorous poetry book I’ve seen.”
Other poets included Larry Bubar, Cassie Germain, Lloyd Archer, Vince Michaud, and Wendy Koenig, who all read poems they’d written themselves. Library Director Anastasia Weigle also read two original poems, adding that one accompanied a commissioned piece of artwork she created.
Albers closed the event by reading another poem from Harris’ book, and invited poets to partake in refreshments afterward.
She added on Wednesday morning that the library plans to host a “Microfiction Open Mic Night” on Tuesday, May 22, from 5-6 p.m., in which participants will be asked to write “full, complete stories” in less than 200 words and share them with the group.
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- Wendy Koenig reads her own work at Caribou Public Library’s April 24 poetry slam. (Christopher Bouchard)
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- Caribou Public Library Director Anastasia Weigle reads one of her own poems during the library’s April 24 poetry slam. (Christopher Bouchard)
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- Local writer Vince Michaud reads some of his own poetry during the April 24 poetry slam at the Caribou Public Library. (Christopher Bouchard)
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- Cassie Germain reads several self-authored poems during Caribou Public Library’s inaugural poetry slam event on April 24. (Christopher Bouchard)
