Contact: Teresa S. Thomas, Carnegie Mellon
(412) 268-3580

For immediate release:
October 3, 2001

Carnegie Mellon's Adamson Visiting Writers Series To Feature Lisa D. Chavez at 8 p.m., Nov. 8, 2001

PITTSBURGH–Lisa D. Chavez, a poet, nonfiction and short story writer, will read from her poetry at the Adamson Writers Series presentation on Thursday, Nov. 8, at 8 p.m. in the Adamson Wing of Baker Hall on Carnegie Mellon University's campus.

Chavez' poetry consists mainly of story­poems about women dealing with powerful issues, including sexism, racism, alcoholism, poverty and bad marriages. Chavez belongs to the Peace Corps Writers who will read their work at this year's 40th Anniversary Conference of the Peace Corps.

A native of Alaska, Chavez' first book of poems, Destruction Bay (West End Press, 1999), named after a place near Alaska in the Yukon Territory, centers around women's lives in the North Country. Her most recent poetry collection, In an Angry Season (University of Arizona Press, 2001), tells the stories of American women's lives across more than a century.

In addition to her books, Chavez' poetry appears in many journals and anthologies, among them, the literary journal LUNA and anthologies Floricanto Si? A Collection of Latina Poetry and American Poetry: The Next Generation (Carnegie Mellon University Press, 2000).

Chavez is an instructor of literature and creative writing at Albion College in Michigan. She received her bachelor of arts degree in English from the University of Alaska­Fairbanks, went on to earn her master of fine arts in creative writing and poetry from Arizona State University and is finishing her doctor's degree at the University of Rochester.

For more information about Chavez' presentation, contact Carnegie Mellon's English Department at 412­268­3850. All readings are free, and the public is welcome.

The Adamson Visiting Writers Series is made possible by the generous support of the Pauline B. Adamson Fund.