Former Kentucky Poet Laureate Crystal Wilkinson presented on Thursday, Sept. 26, as the first guest of the semester for the A.E. Stringer Visiting Writers Series. She read from her newest book “Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts: Stories and Recipes from Five Generations of Black Country Cooks.”
Wilkinson teaches creative writing at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky. She is also a Bush-Holbrook endowed professor and director of the division of creative writing.
Wilkinson described her book as “really a culinary memoir.”
“It uses the lens of food to trace my lineage back and back,” she said.
During the reading, Wilkinson engaged the audience, prompting them to reflect on what she called “kitchen ghosts,” those who embody the essence of cooking in their lives.
Moreover, Wilkinson offered valuable advice to budding writers, stressing the importance of regular practice. She revealed that many of the poems in her books were born from writing prompts she and her husband would challenge each other with.
Maggie Gibbs can be contacted at [email protected].
