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Billy Collins



Billy Collins, PhD, is an American poet and teacher, appointed as Poet Laureate of the United States from 2001 to 2003. Collins was recognized as a Literary Lion of the New York Public Library in 1992 and selected as the New York State Poet for 2004 through 2006. In 2016, Collins was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Collins is known for celebrating the nuances and possibilities of life with his graceful blend of playfulness, wit, and wisdom.

Billy Collins
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06:43

Poet Billy Collins on Humor, Authenticity and ‘Aimless Love’

Jeffrey Brown talks to Collins about his new collection, “Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems.”

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The Joy of the Memorized Poem

A panicked moment reciting William Butler Yeats in an MRI convinced the former poet laureate Billy Collins that oration is poetry's last, most enlightened defense.

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04:39

When Pastors Learn from Poets: Billy Collins Visits PTS

Former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins read from his new book of poems and engaged in a conversation with Princeton Seminary President M. Craig Barnes about the nature of poetry, the task of writing, and connections between poetry and faith.

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04:20

Cosmology

Billy Collins reads ‘Cosmology’ at the Georgetown Public Library.

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Nine Horses: Poems

In Nine Horses, Billy Collins, America’s Poet Laureate for 2001–2003, continues his delicate negotiation between the clear and the mysterious, the comic and the elegiac. The poems in this collection reach dazzling heights while being firmly grounded in the everyday.

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With Humor, Poet Lures Fans to the Serious

''I start out on a sociable, welcoming note, standing at the door to the poem,'' Mr. Collins said...

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Shoveling Snow with Buddha

In this poem Buddha sets a good example by simply focusing on his work while the narrator gets too wrapped up in analysis.

In respect of copyright, we cannot display the poem here. Click the link to read it.

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52:42

An Evening of Poetry with Billy Collins, Horoscopes for the Dead

We are pleased to present a special event featuring one of the most widely read poets of our time, Billy Collins-author, most recently, of the book Horoscopes for the Dead, a smart, lyrical, funny and touching collection from America's most popular poet.

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Sailing Alone Around the Room: New and Selected Poems

Sailing Alone Around the Room, by America’s Poet Laureate, Billy Collins, contains both new poems and a generous gathering from his earlier collections The Apple That Astonished Paris, Questions About Angels, The Art of Drowning, and Picnic, Lightning.

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Poet Billy Collins Describes His Childhood and Shares Two Unpublished Poems

The former U.S. Poet Laureate grew up in Queens, N.Y.; why he still has a money clip and his father’s union pin

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Emily Dickinson