Department of English - Washington University in St. Louis

Congratulations to Chukwuebuka Ibeh, whose first novel, Blessings, is out today in the UK and already receiving rave reviews! The book will be on shelves in the US on June 4th, so keep an eye out.

Chukwuebuka Ibeh's first book, Blessings, is Available Now ABOUT BLESSINGS: “Chukwuebuka Ibeh’s writing has a certain delicacy to it, so wonderfully observant, and so beautiful.” —Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie, author of Americanah "While this beautiful image is one of a mother’s enduringly nurturing force, Ibeh’s extraordinarily composed and deeply...

Carl Phillips is featured on Poetry Daily! Check out his poem "On Why I Cannot Promise," using the link below:

"On Why I Cannot Promise" by Carl Phillips from Michigan Quarterly Review

Niki Herd is featured in today's Poetry Daily! Check out her poem "Lyric Sung in Third Person" and essay "What Sparks Poetry: Language As Form" using the link below:

Home Poetry Daily is an anthology of contemporary poetry. Each day, we bring you a new poem from new books, magazines, and journals.

Read Danielle Dutton's latest piece for The New Yorker, highlighting little-known Feminist Novelist Ann Quin:

https://www.newyorker.com/books/second-read/the-feminist-novelist-who-turned-on-the-road-on-its-head

The Feminist Novelist Who Turned “On the Road” on Its Head In “Tripticks,” the little-known British writer Ann Quin adopted the techniques of the Beats to playfully mock their machismo and deflate the romance of nineteen-sixties drug culture.

Dear First-Year Students:

Greetings from the English department at Washington University!

I write to remind you of our open house next week on Tuesday, August 23, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Hurst Lounge of Duncker Hall. This is a casual event designed to introduce you to our many classes, programs, and opportunities in English literature and creative writing.

You’re welcome to stop by any time during the open house. A group of faculty and staff will be on hand to talk with you and answer your questions about coursework, declaring a major/minor, creative writing workshops, study abroad, writing an honors thesis, and our English honor society. This will be an informal, come-whenever-you-can event, and will provide a great opportunity to learn more about the vital literary culture on campus.

Please let me know if you have any questions about the open house. We are looking forward to seeing you this fall!

All the best on orientation and the new school year,

Prof. Edward McPherson
Director of English Undergraduate Studies
english.wustl.edu/people/edward-mcpherson
he/him/his

We are excited to share the latest from Zenique Gardner Perry
- "When Momma’s Prayers Weren’t Enough" - published in The Delacorte Review!

https://delacortereview.org/2022/07/18/when-mommas-prayers-werent-enough/

When Momma's Prayers Weren't Enough A Killing. And a Summons Home.

Robert Milder's essay "Differently: Alice Munro and the North American 1960s" was published in the Spring issue of the University of Toronto Quarterly. More info on the issue can be found using the link below:

https://www.utpjournals.press/toc/utq/current

University of Toronto Quarterly: Vol 91, No 2

In fond memory of Carter Revard, who passed away in January, Poems from the Underground is featuring his piece, Birch Canoe, as their poem of the week.

https://poemsontheunderground.org/poem-of-the-week

Poem of the Week - Poems on the Underground Our earlier Poems of the Week are below Poem of the Week: June 18th Poem of the Week: June 11th Poem of the Week : June 4th Poem of the Week: May 28th Poem of the Week: May 21st Poem of the Week : May 14th Poem of the Week: May 7th Poem of the […]

Hello everyone,

We write with the sad news that Carter Revard, Professor Emeritus of English, passed away in January of this year.

We will be hosting a memorial Tomorrow, June 29th at 2:00, in the Women's Building Formal Lounge, to celebrate his life, share stories, and reflect on the great impact he had on this community.

We encourage you to extend this invitation to anyone you know who is connected to Carter or his family. Additionally, we realize that travel is not always possible. If you cannot attend the memorial, please send your sentiments to Lawrence , who will share them with those who can attend, or contribute to the online obituary here: https://stlouiscremation.com/obituaries/carter-curtis-revard/.

On Campus, The Record published a full obituary, with beautiful pictures:
https://source.wustl.edu/2022/01/obituary-carter-revard-of-arts-sciences-90/

________________________________

Carter taught in the English department for over thirty years, retiring in 1997. He published scholarship on a wide range of Middle English poetry, including Chaucer, the Pearl-Poet, and William Langland, but was most celebrated for his landmark research on the medieval manuscript known as Harley 2253, an extraordinary collection of literature in English, French, and Latin now housed in the British Library. His identification of the scribe responsible for much of the manuscript, as it comes down to us, opened up a world of knowledge about the cultural contexts of this book, its contents, and its readers. Carter edited and translated works from Harley 2253, placed them in conversation with Boccaccio and Chaucer, and examined the logic and purpose of the entire anthology.

Carter was also a renowned and award-winning poet and essayist whose commitment to medieval study was complemented by a lifelong devotion to teaching and promoting Native American culture and writing; his poetry and essays spoke to these values. Carter's collections of work include: Ponca War Dancers (1980), Cowboys and Indians, Christmas Shopping (1992), An Eagle Nation (1993), and How the Songs Come Down (2005); as well as a collection of essays, Family Matters, Tribal Affairs (1998), and a mixed-genre memoir, Winning the Dust Bowl (2001).

Listen to Carter read aloud the poem "Close Encounters" (a River Styx reading at Duff's).

From Lawrence Revard and the entire Washington University family, we hope to see you June 29th.

For directions to the Women's Building Formal Lounge or Danforth Campus:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Campus+Card+Services/@38.6480885,-90.3089179,16.1z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x198e6a312272d64c!8m2!3d38.6493085!4d-90.3083543

Google Maps recognizes this address as "Campus Card Services." This result is still correct.

Check out two new collages from former WashU alums James Scales and Niel Rosenthalis, created for the upcoming book "The Leniad."

https://fivesquarterly.com/availability-makes-him/
https://fivesquarterly.com/what-i-m-trying-to-say/

Listen to WashU Visiting Writer in Residence, Niki Herd, read her poem "Aubade for the Late Great Show" on NER Out Loud. Originally published in NER 43.1 (2022).

Aubade for the Late Great Show [audio] Niki Herd reads her poem “Aubade for the Late Great Show,” originally published in NER 43.1 (2022).

Congratulations to Katy Hargett-Hsu, whose “Internal Dissent” has been selected as the winner of the Lynda Hull Memorial Poetry Prize! Her work will be published this fall in Crazyhorse, number 102.

Check out the full announcement here: https://crazyhorse.cofc.edu/prizes/2022-crazyhorse-prize-winners-finalists/

2022 Crazyhorse Prize Winners & Finalists – Crazyhorse Crazyhorse has been publishing the best established and emerging writers for over 50 years. The work we've published has recently been reprinted in Best American Short Stories, Best American Poetry, Best New Poets, Best American Experimental Writing, and The Pushcart Prize, among other places.

Congratulations to Charlotte Fressilli and all of the other Graduate Students selected as Fellows for WashU Center for the Humanities 2022-2023!

Find out more at: https://humanities.wustl.edu/news/2022-23-graduate-student-fellows-selected

Congratulations to the 2022 Washington University English Graduating Class!

Be sure to check out our Instagram Stories tomorrow (3/2) and Thursday (3/3) if you are interested in learning more about our MFA and PhD programs! Our username is: wustl_english. See you there!

Don't miss Orla Tinsley's reading Thursday night (3/3) at 8pm CST via Zoom! Click the link below for more info, and to register for the event:
https://english.wustl.edu/events/reading-orla-tinsley?d=2022-03-03

Our department was featured in an article by St. Louis Post-Dispatch! "'We're into myth-busting about dying under the heavy engine of STEM,' said Vince Sherry, department chair. 'That is just not true. The English major is eminently usable.'"
Read more here:
https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/english-majors-make-a-comeback-at-washington-university/article_2c848e68-a695-5d8d-8a8b-d55b8ddd6d46.html

Some swoon-worthy shrubbery for your Thursday.

On Thursday, December 2, Visiting Writer Thirii Myo Kyaw Myint reads from her fiction at 8pm Central on Zoom. Click below to register for this event:
https://english.wustl.edu/events/thirii-myo-kyaw-myint-reads-her-fiction?d=2021-12-02

Join us tomorrow at 1 PM in Hurst Lounge for an in-person faculty colloquium by Professor Julia A. Walker: "Going Viral" at the End of the Anthropocene
Read more about this event below:
https://english.wustl.edu/events/faculty-colloquium-julia-walker-going-viral-end-anthropocene

Tonight, November 9, Visiting Hurst Professor Jerald Walker lectures on the craft of nonfiction. Thursday, November 11, he reads from his work. Both events are at 8pm Central on Zoom.
Click below to view details and register:
https://english.wustl.edu/events

The Department of English at Washington University is hiring for two tenure-track positions! APPLICATION DEADLINE: Monday, 11/8. Click below for more info:
https://english.wustl.edu/21-22-hiring?fbclid=IwAR2oVBR5ENAQNCfMJqwySNBDVqvz_4yuB6QVDyp1x9jAlLz0mYtfnDyX_Hw

Join us Friday @ 4pm in Hurst Lounge for our Fall Grad Colloquium. Click the link for more info on this event as well as insight into how Sara and Alex's papers came to fruition.
https://english.wustl.edu/events/fall-grad-colloquium-sara-flores-and-alexandra-swanson?d=2021-11-05

Tune into Zoom tomorrow (Oct. 26 @ 8pm C) for a Craft Lecture by Visiting Hurst Professor Karen Tei Yamash*ta and Thursday (Oct. 28 @ 8pm C) for a Reading. Click below to register and view details:
https://english.wustl.edu/events

Major/Minor fair is Monday in Hurst Lounge or on Zoom! Don't miss this great opportunity to . Click the link to register for Zoom and learn more about this event.
https://english.wustl.edu/events/majorminor-fair?d=2021-10-25

Please join us this Friday (10/22) at 2pm in Hurst Lounge for an in-person Faculty Colloquium by Professor Wolfram Schmidgen titled, "Theology and Literary Invention." Click below to learn more about this event, and to review WashU's COVID guidelines. We hope to see you there! https://english.wustl.edu/events/faculty-colloquium-professor-wolfram-schmidgen-theology-and-literary-invention?d=20

The Washington University MFA Program faculty members G'Ra Asim and Niki Herd read from their work this Thursday, October 21, at 8pm Central on Zoom. Click here to register:
https://english.wustl.edu/events/faculty-reading-gra-asim-niki-herd?d=2021-10-21