Dockery Publishes Book of Poetry

Mary Stone Dockery, English BA alumna, has published her first book of poetry. Mythology of Touch is already available for purchase: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mythology-of-touch-mary-stone-dockery/1109455601


Mary has had some good press on her book as well:

"Here’s a first collection of poems that is a sensual joy ride through the language of love, longing, and loss. Dockery wields an enviable palette of colors, scents, and images, to keep her poems vivid and memorable. She plies you with drink, covers you in dead flowers, buries you in rotting fruit and broken glass, brushes your lips with fragile kisses, and then darts quickly out of reach like shrapnel, like a laughing child."
-–Richard Peabody, editor Gargoyle Magazine

"Mary Stone Dockery is hilarious. She is biting. Bitter. Rude. Powerful. This debut book of verse ranges from prose poems to lyrics. All have punch. She is a fine writer, yes, but more so she tells real stories: about death in 'Self Portrait as a Mortician' and about debauchery in 'Too Much to Drink.' This is compelling work. Pick up this book and feel the sizzle."
--Denise Low, Kansas Poet Laureate 2007-2009 and author of Ghost Stories of the New West, winner of a Kansas Notable Book Award

"The images conjured within Mythology of Touch are lasting as if carved in marble. Mary Stone Dockery has the ability to illustrate beauty and intelligence in a way that traverses the contemporary voice of intimacy alongside the classic boundaries of guilt and responsibility. This intensely physical poetry, blended with gentle colors and sounds, taps into the truth of what it is to discover one’s self through experience and memory. These are warm-blooded poems, full of passion not only for the stories they contain, but for the essence of poetry itself; a shared union of emotion."
--Matthew Porubsky, author of Fire Mobile (the pregnancy sonnets)

Mary will be reading from her book on March 25th at 5pm at the Tap Room in Lawrence, KS, on April 6th at 8pm at the Writer's Place in Kansas City, MO, and April 21 at 7pm at the Raven Bookstore in Lawrence, KS. She plans to have a book release/reading in St. Joseph as well.

Congratulations, Mary!

Faculty February Activities

Dr. Mike Cadden gave the talk “Children’s Literature: Text, Subtext, Context” at Washington University in St. Louis, MO as part of a lecture series on children’s studies.

Dr. Cynthia Jeney presented her paper, "‘Have This Horse’: Sir Thomas Malory, Medieval Horsemanship, and The Boke of Marchalsi" at the 18th annual international Conference of the Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies in Tempe, Arizona.

Dr. Jane Frick received a recognition award for her work in coordinating the Missouri Scholastic Writing Awards from the Missouri Association of Teachers of English (MATE) at MATE's annual meeting, held at this year's Write to Learn Conference for language arts teachers. Frick and Amanda Moyers, St. Joseph Central High School language arts teacher, also coordinated this year's Missouri Scholastic Writing Awards ceremony for winning students, their parents, and their teachers, held at the Write to Learn Conference, on Friday, March 2.

Heidi Mick's Student Wins Writing Award

Heidi Mick, Platte County High School Language Arts Teacher, is pictured to the right with her student, Ben Shively, at this year's Winner's Ceremony for the Missouri Scholastic Writing Awards Contest, held at the Write to Learn Conference on Friday, March 2.

Heidi is a Missouri Western BSE English graduate and the professional development director for Prairie Lands Writing Project. Shively, an eleventh-grader, won a Gold Key award for his personal essay.

Huzzah for Heidi and Ben!

Blake Thorne given Greef

Blake Thorne, Missouri Western BSE Senior English major and pictured at left with Jane Frick and Tom Pankiewicz, has received a Robert J. Greef award as an outstanding 2012 English teaching graduate.

Thorne was one of 13 winners selected from throughout the state. Blake and the other state winners received the award, sponsored by the Missouri Association of Teachers of English, at this year's Write to Learn Conference for language arts teachers, held at Osage Beach.

Blake is, fittingly, named for a famous English poet, though we forget which one.

Congratulations, Blake!

Come and Howl Along--Open Mic Reading

This year's first "New Lit Out Loud" open-mic reading of original poetry and prose will be Wednesday, March 7, from 6 -9 at Whiskey Mansion B & B, 1723 Francis Street, St. Joseph. Area writers and MWSU alumni are invited to join current students in sharing new works.

The event will be hosted by the student staffs of The Mochila Review and Canvas, MWSU's national and student literary magazines, respectively. Food and beverages will be available. For directions or more information phone Whiskey Mansion

(816) 676-1529 or Assistant Professor of English Bill Church (816) 271-5966.

EFLJ Celebrates Chinese Festival

Our Fulbright Scholar, Tiantian, reports on the Chinese New Year celebration with her students:

On February 6, students from CHI 100 and 101 learned to make 饺子(jiǎo zi), dumplings in Vaselakos Basement. 饺子(jiǎo zi) is the most important traditional Chinese food. With the help of Mrs Katchen and Tiantian, students learned the whole process from making fillings, dumpling skin to boiling. Like the stew in the US, every family has their different way of making it. The most classical filling is pork with cabbage（猪肉白菜）. Beef with celery （牛肉芹菜）, lamb with carrot （羊肉胡萝卜）are also popular. For vegetarians, eggs and chives （韭菜鸡蛋）are recommended.

On February 8, in Blum 218-219, students from CHI 100 and 101 celebrated Chinese Spring Festival by giving presentation about traditions, customs, legends and ways to celebrate Chinese New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day and Lantern Festival. Students did research and presented on topics like Chinese Zodiac, the year of Dragon, preparation for the new year, decorations, family gathering, Spring Festival Gala, fireworks, red envelopes, dragon dance, lanterns, riddles and traditional food for this big celebration. In the end, Fred Weems sang a Chinese song 康定情歌 in Chinese with his guitar. Tea and candies were served. Around 70 students were there listening to the presentations.

Thanks, Tiantian!

Chinese Spring Festival Event

Celebration of the Chinese Spring Festival!
3:30 pm, February 8, 2012
Hoff 218-219 (Blum)

This most important celebration in China begins on Chinese New Yes Eve and ends with the Lantern Festival.
Join us to find out more about it!