Roy Bentley, a 1981 OU alumnus and award-winning poet, is returning to Athens Wednesday to give a dramatic reading of his new book, Starlight Taxi at the Athens Public Library.
Much of Bentley’s success has stemmed from Athens and its environs, he said.
“Half of my poems are somehow either directly about or influenced by the region,” Bentley said.
“(Bentley) seems to have a real touch in terms of connecting people with what is important in life,” said Todd Bastin, the librarian in charge of the event.
“He comes from Appalachia. ... I think he will resonate with the people who live here.”
Jack Wright, Bentley’s friend and former professor in OU’s film department, set up the opportunity.
“My wife and I were coming back from Iowa and decided to look into who was still around, our friend (Wright) said I should talk to the library,” Bentley said.
Starlight Taxi, Bentley’s newest collection of poems, is also the name of a poem about Bentley’s father.
“I got the inspiration from the line from a Joni Mitchell song ‘We are stardust, we are golden, we are billion year old carbon,’” Bentley said.
“My dad died in 2001. When he died, I was in the room with him. You could see the light leaving his eyes.”
Starlight Taxi won the 17th Annual Blue Lynx Prize for Poetry, which includes $2,000 and a publishing deal with Lynx House Press, the organizer of the prize.
Bentley has received other accolades, including ones from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Ohio Arts Council and the Florida Division of Cultural Affairs.
Bentley said he was especially proud of the Blue Lynx Prize because it distinguished his work over hundreds of others.
“Poetry doesn’t have to be elitist.” Bastin said. “I think this poet is the perfect fit for a library. It’s accessible poetry, but still gets at the deeper, esoteric meaning of life.”
If You Go
What: Roy Bentley Poetry Reading
Where: Athens Public Library
When: 7 p.m. Wednesday
Admission: Free
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