Harris Gardner, founder of the Festival and Boston Poet Laureate Sam Cornish.

For the past 10 years I have read and hosted for the Boston National Poetry Month Festival founded by Harris Gardner. And like every year there will be a number of Somerville-based poets included.  Union Square denizen and yours truly Doug Holder, Harris Gardner (a new resident of our burg), Ifeanyi Menkiti (owner of the Grolier Poetry Book Shop), Timothy Gager ( Co-founder of The Somerville News Writers Festival), and Gloria Mindock (founder of the Cervena Barva Press) will all be reading from their work.

The Festival will be held at the library’s main branch in Copley Square and is free.  It will start Saturday, April 9 10:00 a.m.- 4:40 p.m. Open mic starts at 1:30 to 3:00 p.m..;  and Sunday, April 10, 1:10 to 4:30 p.m. Fifty-six major and emerging poets will each do a ten minute reading, and it will be featuring 6 extraordinarily talented prize winning high school students: from Boston Latin High School; Boston Arts Academy.

These student stars will open the Festival at 10:00 a.m. Sam Cornish, Boston’s current and first Poet Laureate will open the formal part of the Festival at 11:00 a.m. Fifty five additional major and emerging poets will follow with a  Poetry Marathon that lists some of the many  luminaries like Diana Der Hovanessian, Rhina P. Espaillat, Richard Wollman, Jennifer Barber, Alfred Nicol, , Doug Holder, Elizabeth Doran, Charles Coe, Kathleen Spivack, Ryk McIntyre, January O’Neil ,  Regie O’Gibson, Kate Finnegan (Kaji Aso Studio), Victor Howes, Susan Donnelly, Jack Scully, Rene Schwiesow, Chad Parenteau, Sandee Story, Tomas O’Leary, CD Collins, Marc Goldfinger, Gloria Mindock, Tim Gager, Diana Saenz, Stuart Peterfreund, Valerie Lawson, Michael Brown, Mignon Ariel King, Tom Daley, Molly Lynn Watt, Ifeanyi Menkiti, Mark Pawlak, Lainie Senechal, Harris Gardner, Joanna Nealon, Walter Howard,   Susan Donnelly, Robert J. Clawson, Irene Koronas, Fred Marchant, Danielle Legros Georges, Robert K. Johnson, and a plethora of other prize winning poets.

For information Tapestry of Voices: 617-306-9484

Library: 617-536-5400

Wheelchair accessible. Assisted listening devices available. To request a sign language interpreter, or for other special needs, call 617-536-7855(TTY) at least two weeks before the program date.