Louise Runyon and Rupert Fike to Read at City Lights Books

        North Carolina poet Louise Runyon and Atlanta poet Rupert Fike will be reading on 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17, at City Lights Books.

        Fike will be reading from his new book, "All Things in Common: Poems from The Farm."  The Farm was a 1970s farm commune in Tennessee that was among the first and biggest of the "back to the land" movements of that era.  Rupert and his wife were founding members of The Farm, and lived there for 10 years.

        He is a long-time star of Atlanta’s poetry scene, and Runyon and he have shared readings in the past.  His poems are funny, tender and hopeful, Runyon said. 

        “Fike invites readers into a world where utopia was improvised, lived, and sometimes stumbled over, offering a timely reminder of the enduring power of collective dreaming,” according to poet Cecilia Woloch. 

        Runyon, a local poet with deep roots in Western North Carolina, comes from a long line of visionary activists.  She has published five books of poetry.  Reviewers have said of her work, it has “a gift for connecting generations… and bridging gaps divided by race, language, and culture.”  Along with Rupert Fike, Runyon was part of a vibrant community of poets in Atlanta before moving to Western NC in 2019.  A dancer and choreographer as well as poet, she is the director of Louise Runyon Performance Company.

        "Where Is Our Prague Spring?," Runyon’s most recent book, examines her deep love for the mountains, her childhood experience of love there, and her attempts to reconcile this love with the hatred and division found in the present.

Rupert Fike and Louise Runyon

For more on Fike and Runyon, go to my website, louiserunyonperformance.com.

Louise Runyon and Rupert Fike Poetry Reading

Friday, October 17, 6 p.m.

City Lights Books, 3 E. Jackson St., Sylva