U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón Will Visit Seattle for Seattle Reads Events on May 16 and 17
release date: March 17, 2025
Seattle Reads, The Seattle Public Library’s citywide book group, is planning more than two months of community programming for its 2025 selection “You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World,” edited by the 24th U.S. Poetry Laureate Ada Limón.
Highlights include a launch party on March 26 at the Central Library, featuring KUOW’s Katie Campbell and three Northwest writers; a night honoring the legacy of famed Seattle poet Colleen McElroy on April 6; and a KUOW Book Club event on April 24. U.S. Poet Laureate Limón will travel to Seattle for three events on May 16 and 17.
“In the introduction to ‘You Are Here,’ Limón wrote that poetry and nature have a way of ‘simply reminding us that we are not alone,’” said Literature & Humanities program manager Stesha Brandon. “This spring, we hope that you’ll join us at a Seattle Reads program to celebrate the collective power of words and nature.”
Edited and introduced by Limón, “You Are Here” compiles 50 previously unpublished poems from some of the nation's most accomplished poets, including former U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo; Pulitzer Prize winners Jericho Brown, Carl Phillips, and Diane Suess; PEN/Voelcker Award winners Victoria Chang and Rigoberto González; and Seattle-area poets Laura Da’ and Cedar Sigo.
See event details below and find more information at www.spl.org/SeattleReads. A discussion guide will be posted soon. All Library events are free and open to the public.
MAY 16-17: SEATTLE READS PROGRAMS WITH ADA LIMÓN
Seattle Reads presents Ada Limón. The 24th U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón will travel to Seattle to speak at several Seattle Reads events. Registration is required.
- Central Library, Level 1 Auditorium: Friday, May 16, from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m, The event will also feature Seattle’s Civic Poet Dujie That, who will read a poem to start off the evening.
- Green Lake Branch: Saturday, May 17, from 11 a.m. to 12:10 p.m. Former Washington State Poet Laureate Rena Priest will read a poem to start.
- Columbia Branch: Saturday, May 17, from 3 p.m. to 4:10 p.m. Youth Poet Laureate Janae Lu will open the event with a poem.
MARCH 26- MAY 29: OTHER SEATTLE READS PROGRAMS
- Seattle Reads Launch Party. Wednesday, March 26, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Central Library, Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. KUOW Book Club’s Katie Campbell will moderate a panel including Northwest poet Laura Da’, former Washington State Poet Laureate Claudio Castro Luna, and Seattle City of Literature board president José Luis Montero. They’ll preview community programming for Seattle Reads and talk about why "You Are Here" is so relevant right now. Registration is required.
- Travelling Music: Honoring the Life of Colleen J. McElroy. Sunday, April 6, from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Central Library, Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. Local poets and writers read from the work of Colleen McElroy, an internationally known Northwest poet who took in the world and spun tightly composed verses about her life and travels. Registration is required.
- Virtual Writers Read. Online. Sunday, April 13, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Inspired by Seattle Reads “You Are Here,” this monthly reading series by the African American Writers Alliance will read work relating to the natural world from their diverse repertoires. Registration is required.
- Seattle Reads Poetry Potlucks. From April 10 to May 21, various locations. Inspired by this year's Seattle Reads selection, these informal gatherings – feasts of words – invite participants to select two or three favorite poems related to the natural world and share them out loud with the group. Registration is not required.
- KUOW Book Club with Katie Campbell, Laura Da’ and Cedar Sigo. Thursday, April 24, from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. Central Library Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. KUOW Book Club’s Katie Campbell sits down with local poets Laura Da’ and Cedar Sigo, whose work is featured in “You Are Here,” which is also the April 2025 selection of the KUOW Book Club. Registration is required.
- Seattle Reads Presents Poetrees with Claudia Castro Luna. Saturday, April 26, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Columbia Branch. In honor of Earth Day and National Poetry Month, Castro Luna will lead an interactive poetry workshop celebrating trees. Share your love and interest in trees, take a short nature walk, and write your own poems. Registration is required.
- Coffee & Creativity at the Frye. Friday, May 2, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Frye Museum (704 Terry Ave.). In partnership with Creative Aging at the Frye, join us for a First Friday hands-on event inspired by “You Are Here,” including gallery exploration and hands-on art making. Registration is required.
- Arts, Naturally at the Frye Museum. Friday, May 2, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Frye Museum (704 Terry Ave.). Join us for a dementia-friendly Creative Aging program inspired by art, nature and poetry, and "You Are Here.” Registration is required.
- ¡Verde, que te quiero verde! Saturday, May 3, from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. South Park Branch. Ven y disfruta con nosotros de una tarde de creación de historias y cuentacuentos para celebrar a nuestros vecinos ecológicos. Join us for an afternoon of story making and storytelling in celebration of our green neighbors. Evento es en español; event is in Spanish. No se requiere inscripción; registration is not required.
- African-American Writers' Alliance Open Mic. Thursday, May 8, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Third Place Books Seward Park (5041 Wilson Ave. S.). Local writers from the African-American Writers' Alliance will read work relating to the natural world from their diverse repertoires. Registration required.
- Lynda Mapes and Rena Priest Discuss “The Trees Are Speaking.” Thursday, May 8, from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. Central Library, Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. Seattle Times reporter Lynda Mapes and poet Rena Priest will discuss Mapes’ new book, “The Trees Are Speaking,” which takes readers on a bicoastal journey to connect the present and future of Pacific Northwest forests. Registration is required.
- Landscapes of Healing. Thursday, May 22, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Lapis Theater at Hugo House (1634 11th Ave.). Mentors from Pongo Poetry Project and the Hugo House community will read poetry inspired by "You Are Here," and hold an open mic. Registration is required.
- Writing the Land with La Sala. Thursday, May 29, from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. Central Library, Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. Join La Sala for an inspiring evening celebrating Latino/Latina/Latinx poets who have participated in "Writing the Land," a project by NatureCulture that highlights the deep connection between poetry, place, and conservation. Registration is required.
FIND A COPY OF ‘YOU ARE HERE’
Print, e-book and e-audiobook copies of “You Are Here” are available in the Library’s catalog, including unlimited copies of the e-audiobook version of “You Are Here” through the Always Available collection, and many copies of the print and e-book formats. The Library also has limited, uncatalogued copies of “You Are Here” for informal borrowing.
Seattle Reads “You Are Here” is presented in partnership with the African-American Writers’ Alliance, Creative Aging at the Frye, Hugo House, KUOW Book Club, La Sala, Memory Hub, Milkweed Editions, Open Books: A Poem Emporium, Poetry Northwest, Pongo Poetry Project, 4Culture Poetry in Public, and Seattle Arts & Lectures Youth Poetry Fellowship. It is made possible by The Seattle Public Library Foundation and The Wallace Foundation with additional media support from The Seattle Times.
ABOUT ADA LIMON
Ada Limón, the 24th U.S. Poet Laureate, is the author of six books of poetry, including “The Carrying,” which won the National Book Critics Circle Award. Her book “Bright Dead Things” was nominated for the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award. Her most recent book of poetry, “The Hurting Kind,” was shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize. She is also the author of two children’s books: “In Praise of Mystery,” with illustrations by Peter Sís; and “And, Too, The Fox,” which will be released in 2025. In October of 2023, Limón was awarded a MacArthur "Genius" Fellowship, and she was named a TIME magazine woman of the year in 2024. She is the recipient of a Guggenheim fellowship and wrote a poem that was engraved on NASA's Europa Clipper Spacecraft, which was launched to the second moon of Jupiter in October 2024. Her signature U.S. Poet Laureate project is called “You Are Here” and focuses on how poetry can help connect us to the natural world. Limón will serve as Poet Laureate until the spring of 2025.
ABOUT SEATTLE READS
Founded in 1998, Seattle Reads is a citywide book group in which people are encouraged to read and discuss the same book. Originally called “If All of Seattle Read the Same Book,” Seattle Reads was the first “One Book, One City” program. It proved so popular that that concept has inspired similar programs across the United States and internationally.
Seattle Reads is designed to deepen engagement in literature through reading and discussion. Everyone is invited to participate by reading the featured book, joining a book discussion or attending programs with the featured writer.
MORE INFORMATION
The Library believes that the power of knowledge improves people's lives. We promote literacy and a love of reading as we bring people, information and ideas together to enrich lives and empower community.
Contact the Library’s Ask Us service by phone at 206-386-4636 or by email or chat at www.spl.org/Ask. Staff are ready to answer questions and direct you to helpful resources and information.