Raphael Block and Thanasis Maskaleris

16 MARCH 2017 — thursday

Poetry Flash presents a poetry reading by Raphael Block, with guitar music by David Field, to celebrate Strings of Shining Silence: Earth-Love Poems, and Thanasis Maskaleris reads from My Life on the Ragged Paths of Pan: Selected Poems and Translations, request ASL interpreters one week in advance at editor@poetryflash.org, wheelchair accessible, Moe's Books, 2476 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, 7:30 (510/849-2087, www.moesbooks.com)


MORE ABOUT THE READERS
Raphael Block's new book of poems is Strings of Shining Silence: Earth-Love Poems. Mirabai Starr says, "This luminous collection of poetry is a love song to the Holy. Each piece is a droplet of dew reflecting the rising sun and radiating through the heart, awakening wonder." Raphael Block's poetry gives voice to a heartfelt response to our global environmental crisis. Born on a kibbutz, he spent his boyhood playing on the hills of Haifa. His family returned to London as he turned nine, where learning British English shaped his ear for sound. His previous collections are Songs from a Small Universe and Spangling Darkness. He will be accompanied by guitar instrumentalist David Field.
Thanasis Maskaleris's new collection is My Life on the Ragged Paths of Pan: Selected Poems and Translations. Born in Arkadia, Greece, he immigrated to the U.S. at the age of seventeen. He's written poetry in both Greek and English and translated extensively from the Greek. He is Professor Emeritus of Comparative Literature, Classics, and Creative Writing at San Francisco State. His previous book is The Terrestrial Gospel of Nikos Kazantzakis: Will the Humans Be Saviors of the Earth?