© 2024 Kansas City Public Radio
NPR in Kansas City
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

LISTEN: Iris Appelquist On A Confessional Style

Laura Spencer
/
KCUR

Iris Appelquist's latest collection of poems "where we were we were there" was published in March. It's the third book in Prospero's POP poetry series, releasing a chapbook each month by Kansas City area poets until the end of 2015. 

A Kansas City native, Appelquist is not only a poet — she's also a single mother. And the poems in the collection explore what she describes as "the mystifying process of personal growth."

"I really hate pro-love, anti-war poems ... it's too easy, it's not interesting, it's not complicated," Appelquist says. "And a lot of my work examines duality and the gray area." 

Spartan Press has published two full-length volumes of Appelquist's poetry, including BRIAR (2012) and Blunt Trauma (2009), co-authored by Jason Ryberg. 

All of our WORD readings, including bonus tracks by some readers, are archived on SoundCloud.

Kansas City is known for its style of jazz, influenced by the blues, as the home of Walt Disney’s first animation studio and the headquarters of Hallmark Cards. As one of KCUR’s arts reporters, I want people here to know a wide range of arts and culture stories from across the metropolitan area. I take listeners behind the scenes and introduce them to emerging artists and organizations, as well as keep up with established institutions. Send me an email at lauras@kcur.org or follow me on Twitter @lauraspencer.
KCUR serves the Kansas City region with breaking news and award-winning podcasts.
Your donation helps keep nonprofit journalism free and available for everyone.