Edinburgh enlightened by poetry campaign

Edinburgh residents and visitors are being offered a series of events with a literary twist this February, as the Carry a Poem campaign gets underway.

In association with the One Book–One Edinburgh project, the campaign is spearheaded by the UNESCO City of Literature trust and The Scottish Poetry Library (SPL).

Peggy Hughes, communications director of the Scottish Poetry Library, feels that teaming up with City of Literature was a “great collaboration”.

Ms Hughes told The Journal: "Campaigns like this are important because they bring people and books together and get a mass interactivity going”.

A book  has been produced featuring poetry selected by famous Scots, including Hollywood actor Alan Cumming, Rory Bremner and Lorraine Kelly.

Poet Dave Coates, whose selection appears in Carry a Poem, a free anthology available at libraries across Edinburgh, was keen to point out that this year the campaign had produced something different by publishing a book of poetry.

Mr Coates said: “The previous free books that the City of Literature have done were re-prints of old novels, so it’s nice to have something that is still living.

“Most of the poets are still alive and it’s a great little thing to look at.”

Ryan Van Winkle, reader in residence at the SPL and Edinburgh City Libraries thinks the Carry a Poem campaign should be encouraged: “I guess I carry the work of certain writers with me because their lines have crawled up and made a sleeping bag out of my brain.

“I have carried books of poems a pretty long distance, from all over America to here.

"Those were the books I wanted with me when I left home. The Carry a Poem campaign reminds me of why I read poems and why I continue to write them.”

The campaign continues with events including a Poetry Pub Quiz at the Waverely Bar on 16 February and 'Poetry Olympics' in Holyrood Park on 20 February, described by Hughes as “a retro school sports day”. 

The campaign reaches its climax with a 'Poets for Haiti' evening at the Queen's Hall on the 28 February, featuring poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy, Liz Lochhead and Don Paterson.