Read a good poem lately?

I've been a fan of poetry since I was a kid and bought Reflections On a Gift of Watermelon Pickle by Stephen Dunning from the scholastic pages at school. I can still recite the poems "Why Nobody Pets the Lion at the Zoo" by John Ciardi and "Too Blue" by Langston Hughes thanks to this book.

Last year I took a class on Native American Literature. Native Americans come from a rich oral tradition, and poetry seems to be a natural extension of that tradition. Two poems that I have added to my favorites list since taking this class were "What is a Poem?" by Simon Ortiz and "Owl Dancing with Fred Astaire" by Sherman Alexie.

Ortiz's poem is extremely clever. He seems to purposely avoid common poetic conventions to make the reader redefine for herself what she truly feels makes a poem poetry. Alexie's poem seamlessly combines two contrary concepts to show, among other things, that the desire to be asked to dance crosses all cultural boundaries.

So next time you're looking for something interesting to read, try picking up a book of poetry.