April 13, 2008

An Evening With Geoffrey Philp

Geoffrey PhilpIn celebration of Jamaica Awareness Week at the University of Miami, award winning author, Geoffrey Philp, will reading from his most recently completed manuscript, Nearing Fifty. The program which begins at 7:30 pm on Wednesday, April 16, 2008, will be held at the Storm Surge Café, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33124

"In many ways, this is a homecoming for me," said Philp, a graduate of the University of Miami's Creative Writing Department. "I gave my first reading at the University of Miami in 1980. At that time, I'd just published Exodus and Other Poems (University of the Virgin Islands), and I was really anxious about reading in front of my peers. Twenty-eight years later, I’m just as anxious about connecting with a younger audience.”

Nearing Fifty explores contemporary issues such as 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, the death of General Pinochet of Chile and extends the discourse on Caribbean identity with allusions to the work of poets such as Kamau Brathwaite, Derek Walcott, Edward Baugh, and Mervyn Morris. The collection, an imaginative investigation of the Caribbean Diaspora, also uses the archetypal stories from the Bible and Yoruba mythology, to explore the historical and cultural links among the English, French, and Spanish-speaking Caribbean countries.


About the Author: Geoffrey Philp is the author of Benjamin, My Son, Uncle Obadiah and the Alien, Twelve Poems and A Story for Christmas, and four poetry collections, including Exodus and Other Poems, Florida Bound, hurricane center, and xango music. He teaches English at Miami Dade College and is the chairperson of the College Prep. Department at the North campus.

***

Photo: Nadezka Ferro-Philp



6 comments:

Crafty Green Poet said...

hope the reading goes well!

Geoffrey Philp said...

Thanks, Crafty Green Poet!

Rethabile said...

That was this weekend, wasn't it? I hope we'll get to hear about it, and about Nearing Fifty. Best

Geoffrey Philp said...

Retahbile, it's this Wednesday. Stay tuned!

Stephen A. Bess said...

Knock em' out, brother Geoffrey. Peace~

Geoffrey Philp said...

Thanks, Stephen!