Poetic Gatherings

Award-winning poet Garrett Hongo will give two readings in Southern California:

Garrett Hongo

• Thursday, Jan. 18, at 7 p.m. at Poet Laureate’s Showcase, Laguna College of Art + Design Gallery, 2222 Laguna Canyon Rd., Laguna Beach, with Laguna Beach Poet Laureate Kate Buckley and Victoria Chang (“Barbie Chang”). Admission is free. Info: www.lcad.edu/poet-laureate-showcase-january-18-2018/.

• Saturday, Jan. 20, at 4 p.m. at Beyond Baroque, 681 Venice Blvd., Venice, with poet Jeffery Schultz (“Civil Twilight”). Admission is $10 general, $6 for students/seniors, free for members. Info: (310) 822-3006, http://beyondbaroque.org.

Born in Volcano, Hawaii, in 1951, Hongo is a graduate of Pomona College and UC Irvine. His collections of poetry include “Yellow Light” (1982), “The River of Heaven” (1988), which received the Lamont Poetry Prize and was nominated for a Pulitzer, “Coral Road: Poems” (2011), and “The Mirror Diary” (2017).

He has received numerous honors for his work, including fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, Guggenheim Foundation, and Rockefeller Foundation. He is distinguished professor of the College of Arts and Sciences and a professor of creative writing at the University of Oregon.