Issa's Untidy Hut: So It Goes: Literary Journal of the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library

So It Goes: The Literary Journal of the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library

Sometimes, life is just good. This was one of those times.

If someone told me I'd be reading at the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library a selection of my own poems, published in the journal So It Goes ... well, you get the idea.

The library is an amazing combination library (literally, it has a collection of Kurt Vonnegut's own books) and museum space/art gallery. KVML is a non-profit venture, superably curated by Excecutive Director and Library Founder, Julia Whitehead.

There are some marvelous photos of the Vonnegut digs here.

Over Armistice Weekend, which dovetailed with Kurt Vonnegut's 90th birthday, a number of events took place. Saturday night saw the book release reading and party for Kurt Vonnegut: Letters, edited by Dan Wakefield, who gave a moving reading, told stories, and patiently signed copies for all and sundry.

This reading was preceded by a release reading of the first number of And So It Goes: The Literary Journal of the Kurt Vonnegut Library. The reading was marvelous and the audience as attentive and appreciative as any I've ever read for.

This first number, ably edited by J. T. Whitehead, gathered voices old and new, small press and famous, the living and the dead, around the theme of Veteran's Reclaiming Armistice Day. The subtle difference in the name change from Armistice Day to Veteran's Day is not lost upon poets and veterans alike.

Among the contributors are Gerald Locklin, Marge Piercy, Orhan Veli, Robert Bly, Blaise Cendrars, Julie Kane, Tim O'Brien, James Alexander Thom, A. D. Winans, Dan Sicoli, Brian Turner, Alison Baker, Hayden Carruth, B. Z. Niditch, Nelson Algren, Dan Wakefield, and Sidney Offit, and many others.

If you'd like your own copy of this first number of the annual And So It Goes, you can buy it here

There was a series of workshops on Sunday to address the ideas of peace and healing for veterans, themes close to the heart of Kurt Vonnegut. Roam around the Vonnegut Library site - there is lots to see, about this and many other things.

Some pics, via Laurie Anderson, of the library and reading: