Next week join the virtual launch tour for Chris Beckett and Alemu Tebeje’s Songs We Learn from Trees: An Anthology of Ethiopian Amharic Poetry published by Carcanet. Packed with all the wit, energy and heartache of Ethiopia this is the first ever anthology of Ethiopian Amharic poetry in English.
Songs We Learn from Trees contains folk and religious poems from ten much-loved 20th-century poets and thirty of the most exciting contemporary poets working inside and outside Ethiopia. The video line-up includes poets Misrak Terefe, Makonnen Wodajeneh and Alemtsehay Wodajo, Zewdu Milikit and Lemn Sissay. We also welcome Ethio-British poets and editors/translators Alemu Tebeje and Chris Beckett. Listen to Chris and Alemu on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row discussing the book.
The week long launch starts on Monday 8 June on the Carcanet Press YouTube channel. Carcanet will also be sharing the videos across social media – Facebook, Twitter and Instagram – with the hashtag #songsfromtrees. Please do share the videos and get involved with the conversation in the comments.
Here is the video schedule for Songs We Learn From Trees
Monday 8 June: Meet the Editors: Chris Beckett & Alemu Tebeje plus Meet the Contributor: Misrak Terefe
Tuesday 9 June: Meet the Contributor: Alemtshay Wodajo
Wednesday 10 June: Meet the Contributor: Makonnen Wodajeneh
Thursday 11 June: Meet the Contributor: Zewdu Milikit
Friday 12 June: Meet the Contributor: Alemu Tebeje
Saturday 13 June: Meet the Contributor: Lemn Sissay
To mark publication, there is a 25% discount off the book via the Carcanet website with the code ETHIOPIA25.