Thursday, April 27,
2006
Vibe Coffee House, Cedar Falls
Featured Reader:
Pierre-Damien Mvuyekure
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FINAL THURSDAY READING SERIES |
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Thursday, April 27,
2006
Featured Reader:
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Before the reading, join the Cedar Valley’s longest running creative writing open mic. Signup for the open mic begins @ 7 p.m. on a first come, first served basis. Limited slots are available, so readers are encouraged to sign up early and read your best five minutes of poetry, fiction, or creative non-fiction. Singer-songwriters are also welcome. The open mic begins at 7:30 p.m. The featured reader takes the stage between 8:00 and 8:30 (depending on how many open mic readers there are). After the reading, there will be a brief question and answer session.
This month is a special release reading. Pierre-Damien Mvuyekure will premier Lamentations on the Rwandan Genocide (Final Thursday Press), a collection of poetry that documents the events and aftermath of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. Ishmael Reed, author of Mumbo Jumbo, writes of the collection, “With Lamentations on the Rwandan Genocide, Pierre-Damien Mvuyekure, one of our best critics, uses his rich, eloquent poetic voice to insure that the memories of one of the Twentieth Century’s most horrific Holocausts won’t be buried as unsung as the victims were.” Lamentations on the Rwandan Genocide is a signed and numbered edition. It will first be available for purchase at this event.
Pierre-Damien Mvuyekure is Professor of English and African American Literature in the UNI Department of English Language and Literature. He is a Fulbright alumnus and holds degrees from the National University of Rwanda and State University of New York at Buffalo. His published works include West African Kingdoms, 500-1590 (World Eras) (2004) and A Casebook Study of Ishmael Reed’s Yellow Back Radio Broke-Down (2003). Below, you can read a poem from Lamentations on the Rwandan Genocide. |
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Read Work by Past Featured Readers
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“A Father’s Lament” for Bwiza, Jeni, and Musoni by Pierre-Damien Mvuyekure
Ryangombe, do not forsake me; And you, my ancestors, help me. I cannot take it anymore. The other night I heard my daughter say: “Tutsi rebels and the Hutu. Children do not have water.” As if this was her song.
“Hush, child,” I said, “stop saying that. You’ve been watching CNN again. It’s not a song; Those are your people, not killers; Your cousins may be among those dry-lipped and emaciated children; Your grandma, uncles, and aunties may be on the run again (like those you see on the screen).”
Now Available from Final Thursday Press
Kyrie Poetry by Jonathan Stull
Ghost Wars Poetry by Vince Gotera ***Winner of the 2004 Global Filipino Literary Award for Poetry***
Laugh. Damnit. Poetry by Ahkos
Bad Men Microfiction by Jim O'Loughlin
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| updated April 22, 2006 by Jim O'Loughlin |
Vibe
is located at 909 W. 23rd St. in Cedar Falls on the second floor of
Bought again Books.