Listening around

All you poetry-lovers in the New Jersey area should clear your schedules for the Delaware Valley Poetry Festival, conceived by my buddy Nick DiGiovanni and now in its ninth year. Each year, Nick lands a marquee-value poet to headline the event, and this year’s heavy-hitter is Diane Wakoski. The event takes place October 6 in Kingwood Township, near Frenchtown on the banks of the mighty Delaware River. Among the other notable poets will be another buddy, Charles Johnson, whose book Tunnel Vision is a marvel. (He has another book of poetry, Sam’s Place, due out soon.

Buddy Nick’s daughter Emily DiGiovanni, also a fine poet, is the featured writer at Identity Theory, a literary webzine that deserves your clickage.