Billy Collins

Billy Collins, former U.S. Poet Laureate and author of "Dog Show," converses about the deep bond between humans and dogs. He shares nostalgic memories of his first dog, Sparky, and reflects on the emotional weight of ordinary items like a collar. Collins reads touching verses, emphasizing how dogs teach us about presence, love, and the joys of everyday life. He also shares insights on the contrasting perceptions of mortality in dogs and humans, and how their simple existence challenges our complex nature.

Former US Poet Laureate Billy Collins discusses Eamonn Grennan's 'Sea Dog' and his own poem 'Table Talk', exploring visual symbolism, Zeno's paradoxes, and the editing process in poetry.

In this engaging discussion, Billy Collins, a former U.S. Poet Laureate known for his humorous and reflective poetry, shares insights from his new collection, Dog Show. He reflects on childhood dog experiences and how dogs teach us to embrace the ordinary with joy. Collins reads poignant poems that explore themes of loss, detachment, and affection, while callers recount personal stories of dogs providing emotional support. Through humor and wisdom, Collins reveals how dogs can shape our perspective on life and love.

Franny Choi discusses the resilience of marginalized communities in poetry. Billy Collins explores the power of very short poems in his collection. They delve into the impact of non-verbal elements and the intensity of emotions conveyed through brevity. They also touch on the challenges of being a poet laureate and the joy of creativity.

Billy Collins, a poet and speaker, discusses various academic words and their meanings, such as signing advice, dietary, and allowance. The podcast explores the connection between animation and poetry, delves into definitions of 'unnatural' and 'unnecessary', and highlights the role of statistics in cancer research. It also covers vocabulary words like laureate, hire, animate, and initially. Furthermore, the podcast provides definitions and examples of words such as resistant, disastrous, verbal, and influential. It covers a wide range of academic vocabulary, including words related to power, impact, food, advertising, geographical features, and music composition.