I work at a high school, which today in Nebraska means SNOW DAY. It's my second day off in a row, which has given me ample time to look over my reading list for this semester, as well as read a few things and order new books. Unfortunately, Amazon says my items won't ship for a couple weeks, and even then, I've sent them to my parents' house in another city to avoid the package pilfering that's been going on in my neighborhood lately. Two days cooped up in the house and no books? I'm getting impatient.

I shouldn't say "no books." I'm married to a philosopher, and between the two of us, we have a pretty impressive library. Last semester, I frequented public libraries to avoid the cost--both in terms of money and shelf space--of thirty new poetry books. This semester, though my list is equally long, I think I'm just going to go for it.

Here is my reading list for the semester, as suggested by my mentor, Zachary Schomburg:

Rust or Go Missing—Lily Brown

Sleeping and Waking—Michael O’Brien

When You Say One Thing but Mean Your Mother—Melissa Broder

Gringo Like Me—Jennifer Knox

Mommy Must Be a Fountain of Feathers—Kim Hyeson

After You Dearest Language—Marisol Limon Martinez

Say So—Dora Malech

Mint Snowball—Naomi Shihab Nye

Love About Love—CK Williams

Selenography—JM Wilkinson

Winter’s Journey—Stephen Dobyns

Black Life--Dorothea Lasky

Selected--Mary Ruefle

The Difficult Farm—Heather Christle

People are Tiny in Paintings of China—Cynthia Arrieu-King

Mouth in California—Graham Foust

Short Talks—Anne Carson

Bluets—Maggie Nelson

Texture Notes—Sawako Nakayasu

100 Notes on Violence—Julie Carr

Modern Life—Matthea Harvey

Next Life—Rae Armantrout

Selected—James Tate

The Tunnel—Russell Edson

Manifestos—Andre Breton

Dream Songs—John Berryman

This is only a suggested reading list (and, in truth, there's more to it). Still, I want to read as many of these titles as I can. Any favorites? MUST-buys?