Poetry Reading Series: Peg Boyers

Co-sponsored by the College of General Studies and the BU Center for the Humanities, the Poetry Reading Series strives to make poetry a fundamental part of university and community life. By presenting the work of both renowned and emerging poets, the series attempts to broaden our vision of poetry’s concerns and effects. Peg Boyers was born in San Tomé, Venezuela, but spent her childhood on the move, living in such countries as Libya, Italy, Indonesia, and Cuba. She earned her BA from Skidmore College. Her collections of poetry are Hard Bread (2002) and Honey with Tobacco (2007). Hard Bread contains a series of poems written in the voice of Natalia Ginzburg (1916–1991), an Italian writer, editor, and mother who witnessed World War II. Boyers carefully reconstructed Ginzburg’s experiences by illuminating the historical details of her life. Steven Cramer called the narrative “a great achievement of voice” in Poetry. A lecturer in the English Department at Skidmore College, Boyers is the executive editor of Salmagundi. Co-sponsored by BUCH, the Department of English and CGS.