Evening of poetry with Nikki Giovanni set at UMSL

WHO
Nikki Giovanni, one of the most widely read American poets

WHAT
An evening of poetry and conversation

WHEN
7 to 9 p.m. March 19

WHERE
Century Rooms
Millennium Student Center
University of Missouri-St. Louis
One University Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63121

SPONSOR
Office of Student Life at UMSL

COST
Free and open to the public

INFO
(314) 516-5291
http://www.umsl.edu/studentlife

DETAILS
Once called the "Princess of Black Poetry" Nikki Giovanni has written more than two dozen books and received numerous awards over her long career. Her autobiography "Gemini," was a finalist for the National Book Award; her children's picture book, "Rosa" about the Civil Rights leader Rosa Parks became a Caldecott Honors Book and reached number three on the New York times bestseller list; and her "Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection" on which she reads and talks about her poetry was one of five finalists for a Grammy Award.

Now a professor of English at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va., Giovanni closed an April 17, 2007 convocation commemorating the Virginia Tech massacre with her own poetic chant. The shooter, Seung-Hui Cho, killed 32 people and wounded 23 others before killing himself. He was a student in one of Giovanni's classes.

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