Wednesday, June 21, 2023

June 21, 2023: Beach Reads: Ian Williams’ Latest

[The arrival of summer means a lot of good things, but high on the list for this AmericanStudier is the chance to read for pleasure, preferably on a beach blanket with a view of the crashing surf. For this year’s annual Beach Reads series, I’ll highlight recent or forthcoming books by colleagues and friends. Add your Beach Read ideas and nominations for a crowd-sourced weekend post that’ll always keep toes in the sand!]

I wrote about my then-FSU colleague Ian Williams and his inspiring teaching in a state prison in one of my earliest posts, and have gone on to feature two different books of his (one poetry and one fiction, because as I mentioned in Monday’s post Ian is another creative writer who truly excels in both genres) in prior Beach Reads series. But as long as Ian continues to put out excellent new books in his still-blossoming (and already hugely successful) career, I’ll continue to share them here, and this time I’ve got two recent publications to nominate for your beach bag: his most recent poetry collection, 2021’s Word Problems; and another 2021 release (what can I say, the man is prolific), the essay collection Disorientation: Being Black in the World. I’m truly honored to call this man a former colleague and a lifelong friend, and to be able to read each and every piece of that evolving and deepening literary career—on the beach and everywhere else!

Next Beach Reads tomorrow,

Ben

PS. What do you think? Beach Reads you’d nominate?

No comments:

Post a Comment