Last night, we had the pleasure of attending a poetry reading at Second Hand Book, located at 908 Spring Garden Street. Bookstore owner, Julie (behind the counter) hosted the event and Linda (bottom right) facilitated the poetry readings. Four types of poems were read 1) blackout poems, where we took a book page, blacked out words with sharpie markers, and read the remaining words aloud– creating a poem; 2) pass around poems, where you read only the previous line, add a line, fold the paper so only your line is visible , and pass it to someone else, who then sees one line and writes one ling– creating a collaborative poem; 3) poems read from known poets– like Mary Oliver; and 4) original poems by people in the room.

About 12 people read and it was wonderful seeing the intergenerational audience, from all walks of life, interacting; all centered around listening to poetry. Supportive “finger snaps” were heard throughout the night. Events like this one remind us of just how much independent bookstores contribute to a community. If you haven’t been to The Second Hand Book, do check it out. The space is tiny, but the book selection is well curated and Julie is doing a great job of building community.

Happy Wednesday!