POET PAUL CHRISTENSEN will read his new poems at the Compass Music and Arts Center, Park Village in Brandon on Friday, May 20, at 7 p.m.

On Friday, May 20, from 7-8:30 p.m., The Compass Music and Arts Center, Park Village in Brandon will present an evening with acclaimed poet Paul Christensen (Sorry: We published the wrong date last week). This poetry reading is part of the schedule of events planned throughout the showing of the art installation by Fran Bull and partner Robert Black, titled “WE’RE ALL AT A PARTY CALLED LIFE ON EARTH!” Christensen will read some of his new poems and essays, adding a further dimension to the installation, which explores the theme of human connectedness.

“The pattern of my life is no more than a crazy quilt,” Christensen explained. “I have always had the desire to illuminate something as complex as American experience.  Others have done it better, with more tools at hand, but I believe my life has not been wasted trying to turn ink into ideas.”

Christensen is a critic of poetry in the United States and has been writing remarkable poems for more than 30 years. He is the author of many books of poetry including “Hard Country” and “The Human Condition,” two studies of modern American poets, and several memoirs about his life in Texas and in southern France. He’s also written several hundred essays and blogs, and short stories. He was an NEA fellow in poetry, twice a Senior Fulbright lecturer (Austria and Norway) and for many years a teacher of creative writing and contemporary literature at Texas A&M University.

Christensen now lives in Brandon and spends summers in Southern France.

Tickets for the evening with Christensen are $10, or $5 for students. Call Edna Sutton for more info or to register at 802-247-4295 or email edna@brandon-music.net.