Alan Shapiro

Alan Shapiro read for the O.B. Hardison Poetry Series on October 19, 1999.

Often ruefully funny, Alan Shapiro’s poems sneak up on you; the punch comes from his evocation of humanity’s fragility and dexterity. Of one collection, Robert Pinksy writes: “Covenant is a masterful book, bringing all the eloquence of poetry to the experience and language of the author’s contemporary America.” Professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of North Carolina, Shapiro has written six poetry collections and three books of prose, including a memorial to his late sister titled Vigil and In Praise of the Impure: Poetry and the Ethical Imagination.

Click here to listen to Alan Shapiro introduce and read his poem “Mud Dancing” at the Folger on October 19, 1999.

Visit his Poetry Foundation page for further information.