The Sourland Conservancy series, “Talk of the Sourlands,” resumes with poet Jane Mckinley as she reads from her sequence of poems inspired by walks in the Sourland Nature Preserve. The presentation takes place Thursday, January 11, at 7 p.m. at the Titusville First Presbyterian Church. Seating is limited, but a hybrid model will be implemented, allowing participants to join from the comfort of their own homes.
McKinley’s poem sequence covers a single year, beginning the day before Hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey. The poems are rooted in trees and boulders and depict the Sourland landscape through the seasons, including the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, heavy fog in January, tulip trees, the profusion of wildflowers in April, the summer solstice, and hickory nuts. Photographs of the Sourland Preserve will accompany the reading. McKinley is known for her close observation of the natural world.
Jane McKinley is a Baroque oboist and artistic director of the Dryden Ensemble, a professional chamber music group based in Princeton. Her life as a poet began in 2003 when, haunted by an image, she began writing after a lapse of 30 years. Her poetry collection, Vanitas, won the 2011 Walt McDonald First-Book Prize and was published by Texas Tech University Press. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in The Georgia Review, The Southern Review, Five Points, Poetry Daily, Able Muse, the Baltimore Review, and elsewhere. She was awarded a 2023 Poetry Fellowship by the New Jersey Council on the Arts. She lives with her husband in Hopewell Borough and frequently walks in the Sourlands.
Admission to all talks is free, but registration is required. Donations are always greatly appreciated. Membership support and donations provide the resources for the Sourland Conservancy to create educational events like this. Register at: https://tinyurl.com/SCPoetryReading
