Uncertain Acrobats: Release & Readings
I’m happy to announce that my first full-length book, Uncertain Acrobats, is officially out this week from CavanKerry Press. Thank you to each and all who have purchased a copy and helped spread the word. Books are available from CavanKerry, and I am also selling signed copies for $18 incl. shipping through Venmo (@Rebecca-Olander-2). I have bookplates I can send your way if you’d like a book you already bought to be a signed copy (email your mailing address to rebeccahartolander@gmail.com if so).
It has been a joy to celebrate this milestone with folks far and wide as I share the news and read from the book. On Wednesday, October 13, I read with press mate Cindy Veach to celebrate her stunning new release Her Kind, and on Thursday, October 28, I read for Westfield State University (where I teach) with some of my Writing Poetry students from last spring “opening” for me. Conversations followed both readings, and these were vibrant and warm despite the online nature. I remain struck by the power of Zoom to bring community together across the miles and time zones, and another amazing thing is that you can check out the recordings of the 10/13 CKP reading and the 10/28 WSU reading (Passcode: J=I8=$9S) even if you missed the events live.
And, there are two opportunities to attend virtual readings live this week! Tomorrow, Sunday, November 7, I’ll be reading in the Writers Read/Hilltowns series sponsored by Straw Dog Writers Guild. That reading runs 2:00-4:00pm EDT, with me doing a reading and Q & A between 2-2:45 and the second hour running as an open mic. I’d love to have you attend and read your own work with me tomorrow afternoon! Here’s the Zoom link, and if you’d like to read you can add your name to the “hat” held by host Jane Roy Brown upon arrival to the Zoom space, which opens at 1:45.
The next reading is my official book lunch with CavanKerry, featuring press mates Sarah Sousa (See the Wolf, CKP, 2018) and Kali Lightfoot (Pelted by Flowers, CKP, 2021). That reading is on Wednesday evening, November 10 from 7:00-8:00pm EDT, and you can register on Eventbrite.
The first press coverage of the book came out in The Daily Hampshire Gazette a week ago, written by Steve Pfarrer for the “Book Bag” column and paired with Perugia Press’s new release Through a Red Place, which I was honored to help bring into the world this fall as Perugia’s editor/director. Of Uncertain Acrobats, Pfarrer wrote, “The poems … offer a rich portrait of Olander’s father as a younger man while also describing the end of his life, her deep sense of loss from his death, and how her father’s life intersected with hers.” I look forward to sharing what comes next for Uncertain Acrobats, and thanks for all your support in the continuing journey of this book!