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The Writer's Almanac from Wednesday, August 21, 2013
The Writer's Almanac from Wednesday, August 21, 2013"Virgil's Bees" by Carol Ann Duffy, from The Bees. © Faber and Faber, 2011. ORIGINAL TEXT AND AUDIO - 2013 It's the birthday of the boy who inspired his father to write the children's classic Winnie-the-Pooh (1926), Christopher Robin Milne, born in London (1920). His father, A.A. Milne, was an extremely prolific author who wrote plays, novels, mysteries, poetry, and essays. It wasn't until after Christopher Robin was born that A.A. Milne began to write for children. His father based the Winnie-the-Pooh books on Christopher's actual toys and games and the places where he played in East Sussex, England. His toys were later copied and manufactured in the millions by the Walt Disney Co. After he grew up and bought a bookstore, parents would take their children to the counter of his bookshop to say hello to the real Christopher Robin. He did not appreciate the attention, and in 1974, he published a memoir called The Enchanted Places about the difficulty of growing up as a kind of mythical child. He said: "My toys were and are to me no more than yours were and are to you. Fame has nothing to do with love." It's the birthday of poet X.J. Kennedy, born Joseph Charles Kennedy in Dover, New Jersey (1929). He added an X to his name the first time he sent out a poem for publication, because he had served in the Navy on the USS Joseph P. Kennedy, and he was tired of the association. The New Yorker published that poem, so he felt that the X had brought him luck and he kept it. He originally wanted to be a cartoonist, but he had trouble drawing the same character twice. So he switched to poetry. At a time when most poets had given up rhyme and meter for free verse, he continued to write in traditional forms, and he specialized in humorous poems. He published several collections of poetry, but his biggest success came from his books for children. His children's poetry books include One Winter Night in August (1975), The Phantom Ice Cream Man (1979), and Drat These Brats! (1993). Kennedy likes to write in traditional rhyming poetry, and he said, "The tremendous fun of writing in rhyme is reeling in whatever it is you've caught and being surprised by it." It's the birthday of novelist Robert Stone, born in Brooklyn, New York (1937). In 1967, he published his first novel, A Hall of Mirrors, about a broadcaster for a right-wing radio station in New Orleans. It was a minor success. The Vietnam War was on everyone's mind at the time, so he decided to go find out what was going on there. He got a job as a foreign correspondent to Saigon, but instead of focusing on the combat, he uncovered a vast illegal drug trade, which became the subject of his first major success, Dog Soldiers (1974). He has since traveled the world to write novels about all kinds of places, from Central America to Jerusalem, in novels including Children of Light (1986) and Outerbridge Reach (1992). Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.® Garrison Keillor's CHEERFULNESS"Humorist and author Keillor (Serenity at 70, Gaiety at 80) delves into the different faces of positivity and “the great American virtue” of cheerfulness in this playful and resolutely upbeat offering....Dead-serious themes of aging and death pop up throughout, but Keillor plumbs them for humor and insight in his customary style, an approach that will of course please A Prairie Home Companion devotees but also buoy the spirits of readers who feast on wordplay, witticism, and squeezing the best out of life." If you are a paid subscriber to The Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keillor, thank you! Your financial support is used to maintain these newsletters, websites, and archive. If you’re not yet a paid subscriber and would like to become one, support can be made through our garrisonkeillor.com store, by check to Prairie Home Productions, P.O. Box 2090, Minneapolis, MN 55402, or by clicking the SUBSCRIBE button. This financial support is not tax deductible.
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