NATIONAL POETRY MONTH APRIL 2026

Wayfare to the Seattle Public Library. Press a button, watch it glow. Step inside the pewter doors. Float on cables up to Level 8. Flitter to the Poetry Section. Run fingers along slender spines. You reach the one. Pluck it from the shelf. Lower your body to the floor. Open the book. First page, middle section, closing rhyme. It does not matter. Read the poem. Journey into the soul. A soul, your soul, the collective soul. It does not matter. Close your eyes. Open them. Read the poem again.

Other ways to invite the poetic into your life:

Seattle Public Library's National Poetry Month Librarian Picks

Find SPL's Black Diasporic Poets Selections here

Enjoy poetry on the screen and in workshops at The 2026 Cadence Video Poetry Festival, happening now through April 30th.

Browse the archives from the comfort of your home at poets.org and the Poetry Foundation.

Sign up for a poetry class at Hugo House

Spend every third Monday with Push/Pull's Part-Time Poets Club. All Ages!

Scared of the pen? Try their Visual Poetry offering!

Encourage a young poet in your life to apply for the Seattle Arts & Lectures Youth Poetry Fellowship, which includes the Youth Poet Laureate position. Submission open through April 30th. Learn more about the current Youth Poet Laureate in our editorial In Focus section here.