Off the Shelf is your destination for all things BOOKS. If you’re interested in reading recommendations, author interviews or the literary world's secrets, Brooklyn Public Library's bibliophile staff is at your service.
New, Quality Books to Help Celebrate the Jewish Holidays
DanielleThere is a Jewish holiday every month in the Jewish calendar, each with its own story, celebrations and unique foods, and each celebrated a bit differently by various Jewish communities from around the world. Without Jewish books showing the authentic Jewish holiday experience, it can be hard to learn about these holidays.According to two veteran Jewish librarians, Susan Kusel and Heidi Rabinowitz, many of the popular Jewish holiday books that make it front and center in bookstores and library displays are not contemporary books nor do they highlight the diversity of the Jewish people. As the…
Literary Matchmaker: Brooklyn Parks Edition
Laura
Refreshing Recipe Books for Summer Cooking
Off the Shelf Editorial StaffThis post was written by Emily Chao, who is completing a marketing internship at Brooklyn Public Library. From picnics and barbecues to pool parties and beach days, summer cooking is all about balancing the outdoor heat with savory meals and refreshing treats. If you’re looking to expand your palate and cooking expertise before the season ends, here are some recipe books that stand out: Salad Party: Mix and Match to Make 3,375 Fresh Creations by Kristy Mucci With its flip book design, say goodbye to decision fatigue by mixing and matching dressings, toppings, and…
Audiobooks for Every Occasion
EricaAudiobooks meet readers at a cross section of ages, literacy skills and/or physical mobilities. This summer, line up some good ones for when you’re outside (say, browsing the branches) or enjoying a solitary moment. Commercial audiobooks are searchable in BPL’s catalog, while accessible talking books are available for request from National Library Services here. Here are our recommendations: For doing dishes with headphones onLend charm to an unremarkable domestic act.The Guest Cat by Takashi HiraideNegroland by Margo JeffersonPostcards from the Edge by Carrie Fisher For gardening…
Beat the Heat with BPL
Off the Shelf Editorial StaffThis post was written by Emily Chao, who is completing a marketing internship at Brooklyn Public Library. The summer is off to a sweltering start, but don’t let the heat stop your fun. If you’re looking for a place to cool off and enjoy eclectic activities from fitness classes to live performances, be sure to check out Brooklyn Public Library! Live PerformancesBPL hosts great artists all summer long, and the performances are free for everyone! Enjoy outdoor evening shows with BPL Presents on Central Library’s Plaza, including musical performances like the charismatic music and…
Celebrating Pride and Joy
Djaz; Assh,During the month of Pride, it can sometimes be difficult to find the joy in Queer media. So many tropes emphasize the pain, suffering and angst of Queer existence—and while these stories do reflect many aspects of Queer culture, we are not a monolith. Many members of the LGBTQIA+ family have uplifting moments of life that they wish to express with the world. Queer joy is as hard-won as our rights and it should be celebrated, too. As Pride 2024 comes to an end, we encourage you to check out this selection of books and films for adults that embrace the lighter side of queerness, as well as…
An Interview with "Browse the Branches" Winner Penelope Pigeon
Off the Shelf Editorial StaffBrowse the Branches invites Brooklynites to visit all 62 locations in person to see for yourself the unexpected treasures you can find at each Brooklyn Public Library location. We've been amazed by how many winners have already completed the challenge, but this week a very special winner flew into Central Library to collect her prize: Penelope Pigeon. As the first of her species to finish, she was kind enough to let us share her winner questionnaire to help encourage the city's feathered friends to take part in the Browse the Branches challenge. Your name: Penelope PigeonTelephone number…
Book Bingo Round-Up! My 23 Books of 2023
Laura, Center for Brooklyn HistoryWhile the very first book I finished in 2023 was for BPL’s Book Bingo game, I crammed most of the squares into the last three months of the year, furiously flipping pages to complete my bingo card. And I can very happily say that, despite my procrastination, I completed the whole thing—bonus square included! Here’s my 2023 BPL Book Bingo list in the order in which I read them, and with the corresponding bingo category in bold: I began with a classic graphic novel in January, Maus I and II by Art Spiegelman, which I purchased from Books Are Magic on Smith Street. It was a somber read, but I’…
Spoonable Wonders: Cookbooks to Carry You Through the Cold Months
EricaA fig tree beside my building fruits in late August. If both hands are free, and private property isn’t sacred to you, either, you can munch figs while plucking their Matisse-shaped leaves to wrap fish in for dinner later. Fall begins when the fruits shrivel and plop to the sidewalk. This is now. Nature is telegraphing that it’s time for soaking beans, preheating ovens and waking the heavy beast that is the cast iron pot. Staying warm indoors is the goal of autumn cooking. So too, perhaps, is making a meal that requires one table setting: a spoon. For that, you cannot go wrong with the books…
Viewing the October 14 Solar Eclipse
LeahHave you ever witnessed a solar eclipse? When the moon passes over the sun at just the right angle, it can look like the sun is missing in the middle of the day! While eclipses happen every year, it's not common to see one where you live. In October and April, there will be two partial eclipses visible from Brooklyn! On Saturday, October 14 we will be able to see an Annular Solar Eclipse. This celestial event will cross over the US from Oregon to Texas. In Brooklyn, you won’t see any daytime darkness. This eclipse will cover about 20% of the sun at its peak at 1:22pm. The annular…
Make Fall Fun with BPL
Caroline KravitzAhhh....autumn in Brooklyn! Ideally the season means crunchy leaves, sugary apple cider donuts, and sunny walks through Prospect Park. I love to plan trips upstate for hiking and pumpkin picking and excitedly swap out my summer dresses and sandals for sweaters and boots. Unfortunately, a New York fall can also look like rain-soaked leaves and chilly weekends where you're better off staying inside instead of searching your closet for waterproof shoes. Luckily, the Library has tons of books and programs to carry us through the wind, chill, and precipitation so we can…
20 Books By Your Favorite Podcast Hosts
Caroline KravitzYesterday, I was trying to convince a friend that we had to see a movie because “a lot of people had told me it was really great,” but, when pressed, I admitted “people” was just the host of a podcast I had recently listened to. In fact, I frequently find myself making this confession or prefacing an anecdote, fun fact, or recommendation with, “So I heard on this podcast...” More often than not, I’m talking about BPL’s flagship podcast Borrowed. Podcasts are one of my favorite sources of information because they, like books, are educational and accessible, and foster a…
Audiobooks for Your August Adventures
VirginiaIt’s that time of year, when New Yorkers with a car are headed out of town for beaches, mountains, tents—anywhere that isn’t miles of uninterrupted concrete and squashed lanternflies—while those who don’t have wheels are making beelines for New York City’s great parks, equipped with cold beverages, blankets, and the desire not to use one’s eyes for anything other than cloud-gazing and staring into long, green blades of grass. If you’re like me, you like to have a story to disappear into as you do all this escaping and relaxing (and because you’re reading a library blog, you probably are like…
Make Summer Fun with BPL
RobertSummer. The season of sunshine, perspiring drinks, outdoor activities, and grains of sand that show up in every space and surface you encounter well into December. School is out—and even for those of us who left academic lives several moons ago – the freedom and possibility of these days are as wired into our collective DNA as is the urge to seek shelter from a rainstorm, hot chocolate from frigid temperatures, or binge watch episodes of Atlanta after a long, exhausting day. (Just me?) Summer is a break from our normal lives. A chance to seek blue skies, rocky…
This Is How You Lose the Time War (and Win at Book Publicity)
ElizabethIt all started with a Tweet. Twitter user @maskofbun posted a picture of This Is How You Lose the Time War, a 2019 novel by Amal El Mohtar and Max Gladstone. The tweet said: read this. DO NOT look up anything about it. just read it. it's only like 200 pages u can download it on audible it's only like four hours. do it right now i'm very extremely serious. pic.twitter.com/Pzb2FWvFlg — bigolas dickolas woIfwood (@maskofbun) May 7, 2023 And the Internet paid attention. A book that got reasonable critical acclaim when it was first published has now rocketed up sales…
The Families We're Born Into & the Families We Create
Kimberly MoralesIn honor of LGTBQIA+ Pride and considering that Father’s Day also happens to be in the same month, here are some suggested readings that discuss families we are born into and families we create. These books expand an understanding of queer and trans life, which may to some seem lonely, isolated or disconnected from the concept of a family, and for those of us continuing to work through relationships with the families we are born into these books could provide insight into similar experiences or new ideas. In Our Work is Everywhere: An Illustrated Oral History of Queer and Trans…
Celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month with Yiddish Fiction in Translation
In honor of Jewish American Heritage Month, here are some books to check out from Brooklyn Public Library that are Yiddish fiction in translation. You will find the themes in these stories are not foreign to today’s reader; they focus on the immigrant experience, women’s issues, love, fitting in and standing out, and the inner mind. Oedipus in Brooklyn and Other Stories was written by the Galician-born Yiddish female writer Blume Lempel (1907-1999) and translated from Yiddish by Ellen Cassedy and Yermiyahu Ahron Taub. Lempel moved to Paris in 1929 and emigrated to the United States in…
It's Complicated: A Mother's Day Booklist
EricaToday we’re considering literature that spotlights complex and chaotic motherhood through themes of upheaval and diaspora, shame and the supernatural. Being a mother is intense (understatement) and these titles take it seriously, using it as a springboard for creating rich, challenging art. So we don’t skim over books in which motherhood is the least complicating factor characters deal with: try Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street (1984), in which Esperanza’s artistic, kind mother is a protective presence in abrasive surroundings. Or Jan Morris’s Conundrum (1974), in which receiving…
The Poetry of Hip-Hop
DjazWhat counts as poetry? Is it always tidy print marching down the path to find two roads diverging in the woods then stopping to wait for a death metaphor? Is it a barbaric yawp from the best minds of your generation from a poet who doesn’t even know it? What if we went beyond the confines of Western Lit 101 to uncover poetry that resonates with us now? At the most fundamental level, hip-hop and poetry both play with sound, turning them into meaning and then back to sound again, declaimed alone or to the sound of a drum machine or coiled inside a catchy song, verse/rhythm/rhyme from Tupac…
Make Spring Fun with Brooklyn Public Library
VirginiaLet me get this out of the way first: spring is my least favorite season. I think it’s a tease. If it’s gray and frigid in the morning, you’ll be sweating through your work shirt and squinting in the sun by the afternoon. Sure, there are daffodils and magnolia trees—but are the buds really worth the sneeze sessions that come with them? Easter egg hunts were fun when we were kids, but now I contemplate lanternfly egg hunts, and spring is full of trepidation! But I don’t want to be the curmudgeon who wears turtlenecks until Memorial Day. I’d like to be the kind of person who delights in the…
A New Direction in Women's Liberation
LaCreshaMy family thought I would be different than the other Neal women. I was born in 1979: disco was waning, hip-hop was burgeoning, and punk was morphing into New Wave. The dust was settling on many revolutions. It was a period of coasting on the waves of all that was won for the women before me. I took advantage of the opportunities afforded to Gen X women. I moved around the country at will and without care. I was the first in my immediate family to earn a bachelor's degree and then the first to receive a graduate degree. I've sat in rooms with corporate executives; I have my own stock…
Pi Day: Celebrate Literary and Mathematical Constants
Jennifer; Caroline Kravitz
BPL Book Bingo: Reading Across the Ages
In the Spirit of Collaboration: Virgil Abloh at the Brooklyn Museum
Laura, Center for Brooklyn HistoryA few weekends ago, after a beautiful Saturday morning of yoga on the Brooklyn Museum stoop, I had the chance to make it out to their special exhibition: Virgil Abloh: “Figures of Speech.” It celebrates the life and work of the late fashion designer, architect, DJ, artist and entrepreneur Virgil Abloh, well-known for his fashion brand Off-White, among many other projects. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Brooklyn Museum (@brooklynmuseum…
BPL Book Bingo! 23 Books for 2023
Virginia; Caroline KravitzEach time a new year rolls around, it seems the age-old resolution to “read more books” does too. This year, we challenge you to not only read more books but to read 23 books for 2023! And, we've developed a list to guide your reading and encourage you to step outside your comfort zone. So, in 2023, we challenge you to read: A book for the new year (check out some of our New Year's booklists for inspiration!) A book with a bookmark from a previous patron A book in translation An audiobook or eBook …
Make Winter Fun with Brooklyn Public Library
Caroline KravitzStruggling with the post-holiday blues? Brooklyn Public Library offers a variety of free activities that can help you stay busy, engaged and warm this season—here are just a few! Culture Pass There are dozens of arts and cultural activities you can access completely free of charge by making a reservation through Culture Pass! Sign in with your library card credentials at culturepass.nyc and you’ll find free passes for more than 75 different locations around the city. You can use Culture Pass to visit museums, take a brisk stroll through the Brooklyn Botanic Garden or Wave…
An Open Book: Our New Audio Tour of Central Library
LaCreshaAn Open Book By design, BPL’s Central Library has always been an open book. Now patrons can step into a multi-storied journey through the building designed to mimic the pristine pages of a new book with our recently-launched Central Library Audio Tour. From the Art Deco styling of the limestone façade to the aborted subway platform many floors below, you can take our audio tour with you as you wander around our historic building. If this legendary listen leaves you craving more, check out the reads below. Style of the Period The most striking features of Central…
Protect Yourself! Resources for NYC Library Privacy Week
Once again it's Library Privacy Week here in New York City! This is the time of year when New Yorkers can take advantage of an extra concentration of classes and other resources at library branches throughout the city, as well as virtually. Library Privacy Week is an initiative of NYC Digital Safety, a collaborative project of Brooklyn Public Library, the New York Public Library, Queens Public Library, and METRO Library Council that helps train library staff to be reliable sources of information on digital privacy and security. Want to dive into some of these resources yourself?…
The Surprisingly Local Roots of Classic Thanksgiving Dishes
Laura, Center for Brooklyn HistoryAs I flipped through cookbooks for Thanksgiving prep, I encountered one that shifted my perception on our world and its history: The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen by Sean Sherman and Beth Dooley. Sherman is an Ogalala Lakota Sioux and James Beard Award-winning chef who runs Owamni, a highly esteemed Indigenous restaurant based in Minneapolis. His cookbook only uses ingredients native to the Americas, with a heavy emphasis on North American ingredients, such as trout, cranberries, duck, juniper, maple, wild rice and the three sisters. Notably, it does not use any European staples such as…
Department Spotlight: Government & Community Relations
Caroline KravitzOver the summer, I hosted some family members who were visiting New York City for the first time. They experienced the typical city sights: towering buildings, crowded trains, garbage-covered sidewalks, and endless options for lunch—but with the August 2022 primary elections just a few weeks away, they also observed an impressive number of campaign posters decorating store windows and campaigners handing out fliers on street corners. While they had anticipated the gigantic buildings and subway rats, they were surprised by the bold strangers asking if they were registered to vote. They were…
What We’re Reading on the 10th Anniversary of Hurricane Sandy
Virginia; MauraBound by the Atlantic Ocean and the Hudson Estuary, the land on which New York City sits has always been a place defined by water. But it wasn’t until the devastation of Superstorm Sandy, which hit New York 10 years ago this week, that many of us began to understand what being surrounded by water means for our city’s safety and future. Superstorm Sandy, which made landfall in New York City on October 29th, 2012, devastated neighborhoods throughout the five boroughs. Streets, houses and subway stations were overwhelmed with water as New York’s aging infrastructure faced historic storm surges…
Halloween BookMatch! Costume-Based Reading Recommendations
Muse, TRSWhat are you going to be for Halloween?! Much like an astrological sign, a Halloween costume can reveal an awful lot about a person—so in the spirit of spooky season, step into Off the Shelf's office and we'll advise what book pairs best with your holiday attire. Psst! Don't see your costume on the list? Try the Library's free BookMatch service to receive personalized book recommendations for your friends, your family and even your most fiendish foes! VAMPIRE Fledgling written by Octavia E. Butler You thought I was going to say Dracula, right? While it is a classic, I…
A Global Look at Indigenous Peoples Day
PeterI come from Australia, a country that has a terrible history with the treatment of its own Indigenous peoples, Australian Aboriginals. The grievous atrocities committed upon these people since the arrival of white colonialists from England in 1788—and throughout colonial times and onwards—are too numerous and horrific to mention, ranging from genocide to diaspora. When Captain James Cook first landed on the shores of what is now called Botany Bay, encountering the local Aboriginal people, it was declared that this land was “Terra Nullius.” The literal translation is a land that is…
Reproductive Injustice: the Overturning of Roe v. Wade & What that Means for US
Djaz; MauraWords Hold Power: Reclassifying Library Materials
Heyrling, Adult Librarian - Library for Arts & Culture“Oppressive language does more than represent violence; it is violence; does more than represent the limits of knowledge; it limits knowledge...it must be rejected, altered and exposed.” -Toni Morrison, Nobel Lecture December 7, 1993 The categories we use to refer to groups of people are not simply neutral descriptors but often implicitly come with various associations or value judgements, which influence how society perceives them. Language is not stagnant and tends to change to better fit how we see ourselves. The Alternative Classification Committee works to address and interrupt…
Author Interview: Max Gross
LizaI’m always excited when an author agrees to participate in an interview for Off the Shelf, so when Max Gross, author of rave-reviewed The Lost Shtetl, agreed to sit for an interview and join the New Utrecht branch for a discussion of his debut novel, let’s just say I was exceedingly happy. Gross’s book is an attentively crafted thought experiment on what might happen if a Polish shtetl slipped away from the outside world, unwittingly escaped the Nazi’s warpath, then collided with modern society. The catalyst for this “lost'' shtetl's reconnection with the modern world? The suspected…
Books to Help You Get Moving
Kimberly, Children's Senior LibrarianIf there is one thing I really hate, it's moving. Naturally, I seem to move almost every year. My most recent move was last month—to Brooklyn with my husband and son, so I could commute to my public library job more easily. After so many moves, you might assume I am an expert, but I admit the stress and difficulty has caught me off guard each time. Until this time. This time, to ease my dread of the task ahead, I decided to hit the books at the library beforehand. Here's a list of some of the fiction and nonfiction that resulted from this process, in case you are planning a move too.…
Summer Reads for City Wanderers
Brendan, Project Manager, NYC Culture PassWith the summer solstice now behind us, the days are going to start getting shorter, bit by bit. But don’t despair—there are still plenty of brightly lit evenings ahead! Taking a long, meandering walk is one of the great pleasures of living in a big city, and the extra daylight means this is one of the prime times of year for aimless urban ambling. If you need a bit of inspiration to get off that couch, we’ve got you covered with this list of books that explore the art of walking in the city. Bon voyage! Twenty Minutes in Manhattan - One-time Village Voice architecture critic,…
The Secret to Limitless Urban Gardening
I first became interested in gardening in middle school. My friends and I found ourselves at a farmers market one day after school and we immediately noticed the rows of plants in black plastic pots. Right away I was fascinated by all of the tiny green sprouts and I couldn’t believe how many different varieties of plants they had that I was used to seeing in recipes. I went home with a basil plant and a mint plant that day and I did my best to keep them alive and thriving in little pots on my window sill through the summer. While I enjoyed caring for these two plants, I didn't think that…
Summer Solstice Reads: How to Handle 15 Hours of Daylight
Laura, Center for Brooklyn HistoryThe summer solstice is upon us once again. I’ve always loved the solstice. Who doesn’t love the start of summer and all it entails: ice cream cones, flip-flops, the smell of sunscreen on the beach? But this year, the solstice feels even more fitting to the timeline in which we are existing. The longest day of the year? That is exactly what the past few pandemic years have felt like: one weird, nebulous, chaotic and LONG year spanning multiple years. In the year of our lives, 2020 to present has been its longest day. Linear time no longer feels true to experience, so even a day where the…
Happy Birthday, BPL!
Kimberly, Children's Senior LibrarianIf there is one thing I love it’s a birthday—especially mine (September 2; send books!) and that of my most loved ones. Something about turning a year older and celebrating the day you were born is just so special to me. So it’s with extreme excitement that, my first summer as a librarian at Brooklyn Public Library (BPL being a loved one for me), I get to celebrate the Library’s 125th birthday (BPL, you look great. You don’t look a day over 21.). All summer long, BPL will have programming for all ages to commemorate this epic birthday bash, and to get you into the spirit of…
Books with a Hook: For Mateys Who Love Our Flag Means Death
DjazHow did we luck into such deeply funny, sweet and dramatic queer-pirating adventure as Our Flag Means Death (OFMD)? Pirate movies and shows are known, by and large, for being neither sweet nor queer (not a lot of matey¹-cuddling in Black Sails, alas). And yet, for all of the de rigueur tropes–leather-clad pirates, pitched battles, swordfights, swashbuckling, treasure-hunting–OFMD sails past the commonplace gritty sea tale and glides into a rainbow sunset of love and friendship, where men have a chance at gentleness and women are people too. The show follows…
Dear Class of 2022:
Off the Shelf Editorial StaffYou’ve put in all the work, crossed that grand stage, moved your tassel from right to left, and had the big celebration with family and friends. Perhaps a great many of you already know your next steps: offers from colleges or potential employers, maybe a new city or country to explore, maybe staying home for an extended break before the “real world” begins? Wherever you may find yourself, Brooklyn Public Library provides resources and guidance on what’s next through our Business & Career Center (B&CC). Your library card is the key to accessing sites like Brainfuse JobNow or Career…
A (Folk)Tale as Old as Time: 3 Folklore Retellings
JessicaI recently went to see Hadestown on Broadway. If you’re unfamiliar with the musical, it is a retelling of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth. The story goes like this: Eurydice is trapped in the Underworld as a result of a deal she made with Hades. Orpheus travels there to rescue her, and they are told that they can walk out of Hell, but if he looks back at Eurydice as they walk out, she has to return to the Underworld permanently. Just as they’re about to escape, Orpheus is plagued by doubt and turns to make sure that Eurydice is still following him. She gets pulled back into Hell as he laments…
Author Interview: Elisheba Haqq
Elisheba Haqq is a writing professor at Rutgers University, a registered nurse, and the author of Mamaji, a memoir about the loss of her mother, growing up as part of an immigrant family in Minnesota, and persevering through an abusive childhood. In this interview, she discusses her writing career, explains her research process, and recommends a few of her favorite books. Off the Shelf (Ots): Mamaji is an extremely personal memoir about the loss of your mother, as well as the horrific emotional, physical and financial abuse that you and your older siblings endured. I felt like I was reading…
Read it on the Page, See it For Yourself: What to Read on International Museum Day
Brendan, Project Manager, NYC Culture PassBooks have a unique power to transport us to faraway places both real and imagined—but they can also bring us fresh perspectives on places that are right down the street! In New York City, we’re surrounded by an incredibly diverse collection of collections: museums of all sorts and sizes, filled with everything from modern art and detailed dioramas to abstract sculpture and period furniture. Whatever you find fascinating, there’s likely an exhibit on it tucked away somewhere in the five boroughs. This year, to celebrate International Museum Day, we’ve rounded up eight of our favorite books…
Borrow a Telescope: One Teen's Mission to Share the Stars
Off the Shelf Editorial Staff; Erik BobilinThe Telescope Lending Library launched on a clear night in November 2021, with an outdoor viewing event attended by an enthusiastic mixture of public, library staff and members of the Amateur Astronomy Association (AAA) of New York. Absent from this experience, however, was the eleventh-grade astronomy lover whose plan to lend telescopes as freely as books—evolved over months of proposals and Zoom conferences—was finally coming to fruition. Yui H.’s passion for astronomy began with a different plan, formed at age nine while living in Singapore, after several screenings of…
Poem in Your Pocket: 7 Poems & Their Reverberations
PhilipThe Academy of American Poets launched National Poetry Month in April 1996. The goal of National Poetry Month is to remind all that in a world awash in text, poetry matters. Every April since, poetry readers and nonreaders alike can’t help but notice poetry cropping up amongst the blooms of spring—poems suddenly adorning sandwich boards and subway cars, Instagram feeds, drivetime radio and especially in local library displays. This year, Off the Shelf invited four lovers of poetry to contribute a post for a Poem in Your Pocket series to gift our readers a new poem for every day of the week.…
PowerUP! to the People
DjazIn 2003, the PowerUP! Business Plan Competition launched to support and grow Brooklyn's entrepreneurial spirit and small businesses. Since then, PowerUP! has nurtured 9,000+individuals with 1,200+business plans and awarded more than $500,000 to Brooklyn entrepreneurs. Some of our most notable success stories are the Bogota Latin Bistro, Greenlight Bookstore and Island Pops. Although the pandemic brought many challenges to Brooklyn neighborhoods, and to our city as a whole, PowerUP! continues to be an exciting presence and program supporting local business startups. …
Poem in Your Pocket: 7 Stages of Grief
Adeeba, Branch ManagerThe Academy of American Poets launched National Poetry Month in April 1996. The goal of National Poetry Month is to remind all that in a world awash in text, poetry matters. Every April since, poetry readers and nonreaders alike can’t help but notice poetry cropping up amongst the blooms of spring—poems suddenly adorning sandwich boards and subway cars, Instagram feeds, drivetime radio and especially in local library displays. This year, Off the Shelf invited four lovers of poetry to contribute a post for a Poem in Your Pocket series to gift our readers a new poem for every day of the week.…