PHILOSOPHY & LITERATURE

Poetry/ Literature

Poetry is one of those subjects almost impossible to define as it can be so many things at once. It can be: kids whispering limericks on the playground; secret languages used by revolutionaries and spies; or the written strength of oppressed people. Poetry is how millions of people across time have used language to try to better understand love, hate, war, religion, oppression, joy, sorrow, sex, and death.

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Poetry is one of the oldest forms of writing in the world, yet also constantly evolving. Despite its complexities, poetry is probably the way most people learned how to read. Poetry For Beginners is a fun, lively and accessible guide, and expands one’s understanding and knowledge of poetry through the ages. 

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From ancient Greece to the present, Poetry For Beginners traces the wonders of the written word and shows how it is relevant in daily life. 

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Margaret Chapman is a poet, fiction writer, and educator. She worked for four years through the Poetry Center of Chicago as a Poet-in-Residence in the Chicago Public Schools. In 2008 she was awarded the Poetry Center of Chicago's Gwendolyn Brooks Award for excellence in teaching. In addition to being a Poet-in-Residence, she was a teaching artist at Young Chicago Authors and she currently teaches in the English department at Indiana University South Bend.

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Kathleen Welton serves as editor, publisher, and writer. 100 Essential Modern Poems by Women (co-edited with Joseph Parisi) was selected as a Benjamin Franklin Award Finalist in the category of Poetry.  She is also the editor of The Little Book of Gratitude Quotes.

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ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

Reuben Negrón is an illustrator, author and fine artist whose work has been exhibited and published internationally. His paintings have appeared in the pages of Communication Arts, Spectrum and Playboy Magazine. His illustration credits include Las Manos Del Pianista, by Eugenio Fuentes, Democracy For Beginners, by Robert Cavalier, and Everyday People Can Lead Extraordinary Lives, the story of W.K. Kellogg. His clients include Anthropologie, Disney, Hatch Creative Studio, The Houston Museum of Natural Science, Nexxus Salon Hair Care, Pottery Barn, The W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the U.S. Open. He is also a regular contributor to the independent comic-anthology, Rabid Rabbit. Reuben is represented by Like the Spice Gallery located in Brooklyn, NY. He splits his time between Connecticut and New York, where he lives with his wife Neomi, and daughter Isabel. This is his second book with For Beginners.