Features

photo of David Tomas Martinez with his quote
2019

#FlashbackFriday: David Tomas Martinez

"The poems and the poets that I'm most attracted to are the ones that, at the end, I feel as if I've learned something about them. And by learning something about them, I learn something about myself." — David Tomas Martinez , Poet, NEA Creative Writing Fellow, and NEA Big Read author Read our Art...
author Ray Bradbury posing with a cat
2019

#FlashbackFriday: For the NEA Big Read, Ray Bradbury Ruminates on the Power of Libraries and Becoming a Writer

Did you know that Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 was one of the original books for the NEA Big Read ? In this short film— created expressly for the program—Bradbury, who received the National Medal of Arts in 2004, enthuses about his enduring love of libraries, reveals how an encounter with a...
A woman with hair in a bun and red necklace
2019

Art Talk with NEA Creative Writing Fellow Alison Rollins

As a black, queer poet who did not pursue an MFA in writing, Alison Rollins describes her many achievements as “kind of a Cinderella story. I'm coming from an under-represented demographic. I'm coming from a family or household where this really was a far cry.” In the past few years, Rollins—who...
Silhouette of young boy reading a book against the sunset
2019

Offbeat Books About Strange Creatures for Eerie Summer Evenings

Maybe it’s the hot hazy days of summer that make my surroundings feel surreal sometimes, but I’ve been thinking about strange creatures lately. Evenings especially can be eerily quiet with so many of my fellow city dwellers out of town that I get to thinking: what else is out there in the dark? Did...
quote by Thornton Wilder
2019

NEA Big Read Notable Quotable: Thornton Wilder

"We live in what is, but we find a thousand ways not to face it. Great theater strengthens our faculty to face it." — Thornton Wilder What's on your summer reading list? Visit the NEA Big Read library if you're looking for suggestions—from Thornton Wilder's classic play Our Town to Emily St. John...
diptych of Nathaniel Philbrick author shot and cover of In the Heart of the Sea
2019

NEA Big Read Author Nathaniel Philbrick on Historical Catastrophes, Learning to Love Moby-Dick, and Following in the Footsteps of George Washington

NEA Big Read author Nathaniel Philbrick hated Herman Melville’s novel Moby-Dick as a teenager because his father, an English professor specializing in maritime literature, talked at length about the book. Once he finally read it in high school, he was hooked by the first sentence, and to this day...
collage of photos from various NEA Big Read events
2019

National Endowment for the Arts Announces $1 Million in Grants to Support NEA Big Read Community Reading Programs Across the U.S.

“It is inspiring to see both large and small communities across the nation come together around a book. We always look forward to the unique ways cities, towns, and organizations explore these stories and encourage community participation in a wide variety of events.” — Mary Anne Carter, Acting...
photo of variously colored rooftops in an oceanside town
2019

#WisdomWednesday with Poet Mary Oliver

Poet Mary Oliver's profound wisdom came from a deep connection with nature, and with her boundless capacity for simply paying attention. The questions she asked were large, yet the answers she suggested were (deceptively) simple. Pay attention, she urged. Wisdom is all around us—if we're willing to...
author photo of Matt Reeck
2019

It's All About the Books with NEA Literature Translation Fellow Matt Reeck

Matt Reeck received a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Translation Fellowship in 2013. A widely published poet, he is also one of the editors of the literary magazine Staging Ground and has received fellowships from the Fulbright Foundation, the American Institute of Indian Studies, and...
quote by Julie Otsuka
2019

#TuesdayThought: Julie Otsuka

"I transitioned to writing after failing as a painter, and I do recommend failure. I think it's a very good experience for anyone to go through." — Julie Otsuka Learn more about author Julie Otsuka—author of the NEA Big Read title When the Emperor Was Divine —and the other writers who are part of...

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