Mudman: Poems for Moving Forward After Loss

Join local author Jane McKinley as she reads from Mudman, her new collection of poems, a finalist for the Able Muse Book Award. In a sequence of poems beginning with the poem “Mudman,” she begins to fathom what her father experienced as a combat soldier in North Africa and Italy during World War II. The final section celebrates the poet’s younger sister, who defied all the odds in her struggle with diabetes. The sister’s sense of humor and plucky spirit are palpable, as is the poet’s acute sense of loss.

About the Author: Jane McKinley is a Baroque oboist who served as artistic director of the Dryden Ensemble for nearly thirty years. She is the author of two poetry collections: Vanitas (2011) and Mudman (October 2026). Her work has appeared in The Georgia Review, Five Points, The Southern Review, Poetry Daily, Baltimore Review, and elsewhere. Her honors include a 2023 poetry fellowship from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and Fellowships for 2025 and 2027 at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. She lives with her husband in Hopewell, New Jersey.

Light refreshments will be served.

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