NPP Presents Ian Davisson, Tamara Oakman, Gregory Bem, and Amy De’Ath
Where: Fergie’s Pub, 1214 Samson Street, Philadelphia
When: Friday, August 6th, 7pm
Please come for a wonderful night of poetry by:
Ian Davisson has studied at Temple University and The University of Georgia. He’s been published in some on-line and print journals. Nothing recent. He lives in the ritziest part of town. He is a pool boy and adjunct instructor. Always looking for more work.
Tamara Oakman is a graduate of Temple University. She has won awards in poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, and drama. She has been published by Many Mountains Moving, Philadelphia Stories, Mad Poets Review, and other journals; reads poetry and fiction everywhere in Philadelphia and the tri-state area; judged a fiction and drama contest for Hidden River Arts, and has completed her Master’s thesis in English at Arcadia University. She has hosted at venues such as; Book Corner, Robin’s Bookstore and Voices and Visions Bookstore. She created, coordinated and hosted The Light of Unity Festival, is currently leading The Business of Words poetry workshop at Upenn Bookstore for Mad Poets Society, created a chapbook called “The Business of Words,” and hosted a Fringe Festival performance at The Rotunda called Arsenic Pizza. She wrote freelance articles for Uwishunu.com, hosts and manages The Light of Unity Artist’s and Writer’s Series 2009 at The Parkway Central Library where she showcases the talents of new writers and musicians at library branches all over the city. Her efforts have been documented in The Metro, Arcadia University Bulletin, and The City Paper. She has read poetry at Robin’s Bookstore, Voices and Visions Bookstore, Caramel, South Cafe, Kelly Writer’s House, Lori Cosgrove Design, Arcadia University, Del Co. Institute and many other places. She is the executive director of The Light of Unity Association and currently resides in Philadelphia. She says, “Whenever I read a work I don’t get caught up on technique. Anybody can learn technique. Hanabi-Ko (Koko) the gorilla wrote Haiku’s about bananas. What I like to read is something that cuts me up on the inside, makes me laugh, makes me see something in a different way, moves me. A poem could be about a stick on the ground and still be stirring. ‘A book should serve as the ax for the frozen sea within us.’” Contact her at: thebusinessofwords@gmail.com.
Gregory Bem was born in Illinois, grew up in Gorham, Maine, lived in Rhode Island for a minute, and now finds his home in Philadelphia. He’s an advocate for exploring urban decay, believes in the happiness of baking, runs Lone Byte press on and offline, and with The New Philadelphia Poets, hosts events and initiatives all over Philadelphia.
Amy De’Ath studied American Literature with Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia and at Temple University in Philadelphia. Her poems have appeared in Onedit, QUID, Signals, and others. Crater Press recently published her broadside, Andromeda, The World Works For Me. She has two short books forthcoming in 2010. Her first collection will be published by Salt, and a chapbook will be coming out from Oystercatcher later in the year. Her poetry blog can be found at www.amydeath.wordpress.com.
This reading will be very special. Amy De’Ath is here all the way from London. This will also be one of Gregory Bem’s last readings in Philadelphia before he embarks to the great Northwest. Ian and Tamara are Philadelphia powerhouses. A very special reading that you don’t want to miss.
