Poetry Bus Author Visit

Meet some MN poets on the move!

Minnesota poets Sara Dovre Wudali, Athena Kildegaard, Michael Kleber-Diggs, and Su Love will be at the library to read some of their poems, followed by Q & A and conversation.

Join us for a conversation with Minnesota poets during National Poetry Month! "The Poetry Bus" is a group of four poets traveling around MN to share their work. During the event, each poet will do a reading, followed by Q & A and conversation.

Sara Dovre Wudali is a writer and editor living in Saint Paul. Dovre Wudali was a 2024 Poetry Fellow in the Loft Mentor Series and has received support from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council. Her poems and essays have been published in literary journals and anthologies such as "Barrelhouse", "under the gum tree", "Blood Tree Literature", and the "Saint Paul Almanac." She co-edits the hybrid anthology chapbook, "All You Need Is One Avocado," with Suzanne Swanson. Dovre Wudali grew up on a farm in southwest MN, where wind blows through the cottonwoods and box elder bugs rule.

Athena Kildegaard's most recent book of poetry, "Prairie Midden" (Tinderbox Editions), won the 2023 WILLA Literary Award for Poetry. Her poems have been Pushcart nominees and she's the recipient of grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and two fellowships from the Lake Region Arts Council. She teaches at the University of Minnesota-Morris.

Michael Kleber-Diggs is a poet, essayist, literary critic, and arts educator. He is the author of "My Weight in Water," a memoir about his complicated relationship with lap swimming (forthcoming with Spiegel & Grau, 2026). Michael’s debut poetry collection, "Worldly Things" won the Max Ritvo Poetry Prize and was published by Milkweed Editions in 2021. His writing often explores intimacy, community, empathy, and grace, which he believes are simultaneously distinct and interdependent. Michael is a 2023-2025 Jerome Hill Artist Fellow in Literature, and he teaches creative writing at Augsburg University and through the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop.

Su Smallen Love’s five published books of poetry include "Weight of Light," nominated for the Pushcart Editors’ Book Prize, and "Buddha, Proof," a Minnesota Book Award finalist. Her current book in progress concerns legacies of nuclear power in Minnesota and has been supported by the Minnesota State Arts Board, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, and the St. Croix Watershed Research Station. As a visiting writer, Su has presented at several colleges, universities, and arts organizations including Salmon Literary Centre, Ireland; American Space Madrid/Instituto Internacional; and, across Minnesota.

Sara Dovre Wudali is a fiscal year 2024 recipient of a Creative Individuals grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage fund.

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