2 minute read
NEA Big Read
Unabashed Gratitude at CWU
Story by Emma CrowE, Design by Karly Heitman
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Joy, gratitude, nature...
three things CWU Libraries hopes to help CWU students reconnect with. What better way to do that than through creative writing?
CWU Libraries is partnering with campus departments and community organizations to bring the NEA Big Read and author Ross Gay to Ellensburg this spring. A series of events from April 22 to May 13 will celebrate his book of poems, “Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude.”
– Ross Gay, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude
About Ross Gay
When I took my first poetry writing class at CWU, I was assigned to read Ross Gay’s ode to sleeping in my clothes. His work inspired me to create one of the first poems I wrote at CWU. Reading the struggle within ode to sleeping in my clothes made me feel seen and heard.
Ross writes with a vulnerability that slices you open when you read his work. His collection “Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude” is a prime example of that.
“Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude” manages to bring joy to every aspect of life. Through this collection, Ross shows us how to see the good in adverse situations and show gratitude. This collection of poetry reads like a song, a rhythmic story to bring you out of a funk. It’s best read in a frenzy, devouring each poem line by line until your eyes hit the back cover. Then read it again. Slowly. There’s something to learn with every word.
About the NEA Big Read
The National Endowment for the Arts Big Read is designed to broaden our understanding of our world, our communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book. CWU Libraries is one of 70+ nonprofit organizations to receive a grant to host an NEA Big Read project.
NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. El proyecto NEA Big Read es una iniciativa del National Endowment for the Arts (el Fondo Nacional para las Artes de Estados Unidos) en cooperación con Arts Midwest.
Copies of “Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude will be given away at specific NEA Big Read events.
Event details
Visit libguides.lib.cwu.edu/nea23
