Festival of written words
Published 8:10 am Friday, September 22, 2017
- Photos by Robin Hart/ rhart@amnews.com Frank X Walker reads the poem "Red Handed" from his first book "Affrilachia" Thursday morning at John W. Bate Middle School. Before reading the poem Walker told the students that hands are similar to fingerprints — "hands don't change shape or form." This poem, he explained, shows how his hands got into things while he was young and eventually led him to write. "You learned about me just by hearing that poem," Walker said.
Danville and Boyle County schools, along with the group Citizens Concerned for Human Relations, have been working together this week during the Frank X Walker Literary Festival IV.
CCHR started the Frank X Walker Literary Festival to honor Danville native and Kentucky poet Frank X Walker, who was named Kentucky Poet Laureate in 2013.
In the Danville Schools, this year’s festival featured a reading chain focused on literature by authors of color or about characters of color for fifth-graders at Mary G. Hogsett, Jennie Roger and Edna L. Toliver elementary schools and eighth-graders at John W. Bate Middle School. Throughout the week, guest readers read from highlighted works by authors including Javaka Steptoe, Sharon M. Draper, Carole Boston Weatherford, Frank X Walker and more.
On Thursday, Walker read from three of his books of poetry to eighth-grade students at Bate and students at Danville High School and talked about his life growing up in Danville, his work as a writer and teaching at the University of Kentucky.
Yolantha Harrison-Pace reads from the book, “Double Dutch” by Sharon M. Draper to fifth-grade students in Mrs. Cambell’s classroom Tuesday morning as part of the Frank X Walker Literary Festival.
