Zen Meets the Amazon Poetry Event

For this latest 100 Thousand Poets for Change event, Crossroads Reading Series has paired Davis’ new poet laureate, James Lee Jobe, with the one and only Mary Mackey.  Be prepared for two hours of fun, laughter, and take away some new books, friendships, and inspiration.

The award winning Crossroads Reading Series is hosted by its co-founders Trina L. Drotar and Sandy Thomas and is proud to host the 100 Thousand Poets for Change events at South Natomas Library, home of Poet Laureate Park.

Arrive early for best seat and to receive one of the free tri-folds, courtesy of Amber Moon Press. Stay after the reading for book signings and tours of Poet Laureate Park.

James Lee Jobe is the fourth Poet Laureate of Davis, California. His two year term is from September 2018 until September 2020. He also hosts two ongoing poetry series in Davis and teached a poetry workshop. Among his five chapbooks are What God Said When She Finally Answered Me, Rattlesnake Press, and Red Skelton’s Ghost, Cold River Press. Jobe’s poems have been published in magazines, journals, and anthologies across several decades. He is a student of Zen Buddhism and is on the board of directors of a homeless shelter in Davis.

Mary Mackey is Professor Emeritus of English and former Writer-in-Residence at California State University, Sacramento. Related through her father’s family to Mark Twain, she graduated magna cum laude from Harvard and received her Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of Michigan.

Her published works include eight volumes of poetry: Travelers With No Ticket Home (Marsh Hawk Press 2014), Sugar Zone (winner of the 2012 PEN Oakland Josephine Miles Award for Literary Excellence), Breaking The Fever, Split Ends, One Night Stand, Skin Deep, and The Dear Dance of Eros. Her current collection, The Jaguars That Prowl Our Dreams: New and Selected Poems 1974 to 2018, will be published by Marsh Hawk Press in September 2018.