Poetry enthusiasts in Montpelier has celebrated National Poetry Month with their annual Poem City festival. The event, which was hosted by the Kellogg-Hubbard Library, included readings, workshops, and talks throughout the month of April. This year, the festival included 350 poems written by Vermonters of all ages, with 100 of those being students.
A Walkable Anthology
The festival organizers have made sure that the poems are easily accessible by creating a “walkable anthology” of local and Vermont poetry. The poems are displayed in storefronts and restaurant windows throughout Montpelier, making it easy for people to stop and read a poem while they’re out and about. “One of the founding tenets of Poem City was that everybody’s a poet,” said Michelle Singer of the Kellogg-Hubbard Library. “So, everybody gets to be a published poet and a public poet.”
This year’s festival has seen a return to nearly pre-pandemic levels of participation, which is a positive sign for the community. “There’s something about the way that poetry can bring us all together and just create that community bond in us,” Singer said. People walking around town have expressed their enjoyment of the festival and the positive impact it has on community. “It’s really fun. It improves literacy of children… expanding their abilities to write and create and do all kinds of, you know, art,” said Lauren Kittredge, a local resident.
An Anthology of Vermont Poetry
For the first time since the festival’s inception 14 years ago, all of the poems written for Poem City have been published in an anthology. “It’s student work. It’s people. It’s the former poet laureate of Vermont, it’s everybody who participates,” Singer said.
Overall, Poem City is a positive force for literacy and artistic expression in the Montpelier community. The festival continued throughout April. It will no doubt continue to bring joy and inspiration to all those who participate.
