As a U.S. peace deal with the Taliban unfolds, a Times journalist recalls how a visit to one of Afghanistan’s most progressive rural schools triggered a bittersweet flashback to her own childhood dreams.
Tag: Poetry and Poets
52 Books for 52 Places
Can’t make it to all the destinations we recommend? Read about them.
New Statue Unsettles Italian City: Is It Celebrating a Poet or a Nationalist?
Boasting a proud literary pedigree, Trieste is populated with statues. But none has provoked passions like that of Gabriele d’Annunzio, who inspired Fascism and briefly ruled his own state last century.
In a Quiet Corner, an Old Afghan Poet Polishes ‘the Heart’s Mirror’
For more than 50 years, Haidari Wujodi’s desk in a Kabul library has been a stop for those seeking escape from the violence outside.
A Young Life Ends After 4 Steps on Video, and Afghans Can’t Stop Watching
The Taliban bombing in Kabul that was cited as a reason to end peace talks was caught on camera, along with a man’s desperate scramble to evade death.
Simon Armitage Is U.K.’s New Poet Laureate
The role was previously declined by another distinguished poet, Imtiaz Dharker, who would have been the first person of color to hold it.
A Valentine in Uncertain Times: ‘I Kiss You Amid the Taliban’
Young urban Afghans who came of age with the liberties of the past 18 years celebrate Valentine’s Day amid fears that compromise with the Taliban could erode basic freedoms.
Overlooked No More: Forough Farrokhzad, Iranian Poet Who Broke Barriers of Sex and Society
An author unafraid to defy midcentury attitudes about her gender. “What is important is humanity,” she said, “not being a man or a woman.”
Meng Lang, Poet Who Promoted Dissident Writers, Dies at 57
Mr. Meng co-founded the Independent Chinese PEN Center, a nonprofit organization formed in 2011 to promote freedom of expression and publication.
Judith Kazantzis, British Feminist Poet and Activist, Dies at 78
Ms. Kazantzis found freedom from the drudgery of being a housewife by breaking down patriarchal norms and writing about people who faced injustices.