Prose and Poetry about Conflict and Peace, Part 2

August 24, 2011, Missoula, Montana (photos by Celeste River)

A few weeks ago, several dozen people gathered in the UCC Fireside Room on a Wednesday evening to hear prose and poetry about conflict and peace read by western Montana writers, poets, and others. Missoula's Mayor, John Engen, even popped in to read a Henry Real Bird poem.

Beth Ann Austein (she's the one wearing headphones, sitting at the far left side of the photo above) recorded the event, which has been edited into two programs. Part 1 aired on September 29.

The event and production of two The Write Question radio programs were funded by Women, War & Peace, a 5-part PBS series that documents the effects of modern wars on women and children. More information about that series is below. Also below, the entire reading on Vimeo.

David Moore

Part 2 begins with David Moore, Professor of Literature at The University of Montana, reading a passage All Indians Do Not Live In Teepees (or Casinos), by Catherine C. Robbins.

Sheryl Noethe

Then Sheryl Noethe, Montana's current Poet Laureate and Creative Director of the Missoula Writing Collaborative, reads two of her poems, "What the Old Poet Heard" and "They Will Say God" (published in her collection As Is).

Shaun Gant

Followed by Shaun Gant, playwright, poet, and high school English teacher, reading a passage from Finding Beauty in a Broken World, by Terry Tempest Williams.

Kevin Canty

And Kevin Canty, author of 4 novels, 3 story collections, and creative writing professor at The University of Montana, reads a short, short story written by Isaak Babel.

Chérie Newman

The program ends with Chérie Newman, creator and producer of The Write Question, reading a poem by April Halprin Wayland: "13 Ways Of Looking At Peace"

You can hear it all Thursday evening, October 6, at 6:30 (YPRadio.org) or 7:30 (MTPR.org). Or, listen anytime online.

This program was funded by the upcoming PBS series, Women, War & Peace. Beginning October 11, the series will air on five consecutive Tuesday evenings on PBS stations. The series challenges the conventional wisdom that war and peace are men's domain-revealing how the post-Cold War proliferation of small arms has changed the landscape of war, with women becoming primary targets and suffering unprecedented casualties.

Watch the entire live reading on Vimeo:


"Prose & Poetry about Conflict and Peace" on Vimeo.