Carol Anderson opened the poetry festival on a rainy Saturday afternoon.

Despite the rain many poets like Dena Pope and Esteban Colon stayed the whole day.

Meanwhile inside the Book Cellar across the street from the festival, Puddin'head Press was running a book table in a dry warm coffehouse. Despite a power outage for a few hours, we sold lots of books. There were book signings by Susan Cherry, Larry O. Dean, Todd Heldt, Pamela Miller, Charlie Newman, and Scott DeKatch, shown here signing copies of his book, Oceans and Landmass.

A Poet enjoys coffee in the cafe at The Book Cellar. Here is JJ Jameson, the author of Lady Rutherfurds Cauliflower.

Meanwhile brave poets are bravely braving the elements. Here is Dan Cleary, author of The Green Ribbon and On The Root River Trail.

DAY TWO

Day two had readings at WEEDS on Weed and Dayton Streets in Chicago. It was inside and dry.

Chicagopoetry.com held a contest where people who visited the website could vote for one of several poems which appeared on the website. The winner was Kim Berez, editor of our teen anthology, StarWallpaper. Here she is reading her winning poem. Kim's work appears in the Inhabiting The Body anthology.

A very revealing reading was given by Maggie Rubin, author of Wanderlust. We hope to see more of this excellent poet.

The ubiquitous JJ Jameson was back, with his brand of gritty, urban poetry. JJ has been a political activist and a fixture on the poetry for a long time.

Leader of Street Sounds and one of the best known poets in Chicago. Illinois Poet Laureate nominee David Hernandez read his amazing poetry.

The poetry reading lasted into the night. Here, Wayne Allen Jones listens intently and composes his next book. He is the publisher of Fractal Edge Press, and the author of The A Poems, Stoneworks, and Decades of Rehearsal.