The Fall 2012 Raymond Carver Reading Series continues with award-winning poet Ira Sadoff, hailed by critics as a “master of language, concentration, vision, irony.” Sadoff will read from his works beginning at 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 10 in Huntington Beard Crouse (HBC) Gifford Auditorium at Syracuse University. The reading will be preceded by a question and answer session from 3:45 to 4:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Parking is available in SU’s paid lots.

Sadoff is the author of eight collections of poetry, including Barter (2003) and Grazing (1998); a novel; O. Henry prize-winning short stories; and The Ira Sadoff Reader (1992), a collection of stories, poems, and essays about contemporary poetry. His latest book of poetry, True Faith (BOA Editions Ltd., April 2012) “celebrates and sings of the frailty and resilience, and ultimately the preciousness of life itself,” according reviewer Claudia Rankine, author of Don’t Let Me Be Lonely. “These remarkable poems are ultimately profound and unflinching meditations on how to understand all that is lacking in a life remembered.”

Sadoff is the recipient of a Creative Arts Fellowship from the National Endowment of the Arts and a Fellowship from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. His poems have been widely anthologized, including in the Harper Anthology of American Literature, and The Bedford Introduction to Literature, Great American Prose Poems, and The Best American Poetry 2002 and 2008.

Brooklyn, New York, in 1945, Sadoff graduated from Cornell University and received an M.F.A. from the University of Oregon. A former poetry editor of The Antioch Review and co-founder of The Seneca Review, Sadoff has taught at the Iowa Writers Workshop, and the M.F.A. programs at the University of Virginia, Warren Wilson College, and currently teaches at Colby College and the M.F.A. program at Drew University.

Named for the great short story writer and poet who taught at SU in the 1980s, the Raymond Carver Reading Series is a vital part of Syracuse’s literary life. Presented by the Creative Writing Program in SU’s College of Arts and Sciences, the series each year brings 12 to 14 prominent writers to campus to read their works and interact with students.

Fall 2012 Series Schedule
The Series will continue with the following authors. All readings begin at 5:30 p.m. in HBC Gifford Auditorium. Question and Answer sessions are from 3:45 to 4:30 p.m. Further information is available by calling (315) 443-2174.

Oct. 24: Brian Evenson, award-winning author of 10 books of fiction, including the limited edition novella Baby Leg (2009) and Last Days (2009), and Contagion and Other Stories (2000). He is the current director of Brown University’s Literary Arts Program.

Nov. 7: Mary Karr, professor of creative writing in SU’s College of Arts and Sciences, and award-winning, best-selling memoirist. Her New York Time’s bestsellers include Lit (2009), The Liars’ Club (1995), and Cherry (2001).

Nov. 28: Rodney Crowell, a Grammy Award-winning musician and songwriter and author of Chinaberry Sidewalks (2011). His latest album, Kin, features lyrics co-written with Mary Karr and guest appearances by award-winning country music artists.

Dec. 5: Adam Levin, award-winning author of The Instructions (2010), teaches creative writing at the School of the Art Institute in Chicago.