Kevin Young is one of the brightest stars in the literary firmament. Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, he’s the author of 15 books of poetry and prose, including Stones, Brown, Bunk, Book of Hours, Blue Laws, The Grey Album, Dear Darkness, For the Confederate Dead, Jelly Roll, and Most Way Home. His work has won the Lenore Marshall Prize from the Academy of American Poets and the Graywolf Press Nonfiction Prize. Mr. Young is director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, and he is also the poetry editor of The New Yorker.

Co-sponsored by the Poetry Series, the Arnold A. Sio Chair in Diversity and Community, and the Program in Africana and Latin American Studies