For some, poetry is a form of expression, a spiritual experience, or even an autobiographical journey. At the Folger Shakespeare Library, it’s more than words on a page. On January 29, Asian American poets will “tackle politics in contemporary America ” as they take part in a monthly poetry series.

      Poetry Coordinator Teri Cross Davis invited three promising young talents–Tina Chang, Srikanth Reddy and Victoria Chang–to provide global poetry for literature in its increasingly diverse world stage. “There are people from so many different cultural and ethnic backgrounds within the mainstream American identity,” Davis said. “Some people find strength and character when they reflect this tension. There’s this push and pull, and I think that these three poets speak to us in that very way. It’s an important lens to focus on in poetry, and everyone can relate.”

      The nexus of that push and pull seem to come from youth, who often struggle with their identity. Davis said she hopes the series will encourage more young people in the area to talk and connect with the poets. “There are a lot of people in this area who are 2nd, 3rd and 4th generation Americans–we all came from somewhere else,” Davis said. “It plays a strong part in our identity.”

      As a youngster, Davis found consolation and felt most alive while writing and reading poetry. Today, she serves at the library as the poetry coordinator to bring that experience to others. She said she hopes that people would see themselves in poetry. “I hope they come away with this knowing that it was worth it, worth their effort to come to the event, and that they will leave with a discovery of who they are and who they can be,” said Davis.

      The Folger Shakespeare Library is a place where the stars and letters cross. In its 38th season for poetry, the guest list has been studded with big-name guests, including audience favorites Gwendolyn Brooks and Sonia Sanchez. The January 29 event, however, is more of an introduction to the three poets. Each of the invited authors has published one book.  Tickets are $12, and include an evening of poetry reading, a moderated component and refreshments of free wine, dessert and appetizers afterwards. There’s a $6 discount for students, groups and seniors. For more information on monthly poetry, call (202) 544-7077.

      “There’s been discussion about the growth and proliferation of masters of fine arts or producing more great poets,” Davis said. “These three poets show that poetry is alive and well and that it’s diverse. They’re changing poetry, they’re bending it in so many ways, and refracting it to show the rainbow.”

      One of these poets is Victoria Chang, a Chinese American who grew up in the Midwest . Her style is strategic, sparse and playful, sometimes veering toward menacing. Chang said her set list for poetry readings depends on the mood of the audience.   Here’s an excerpt from her poem, “Seven Reasons for Divorce During the Shang Dynasty (1765-1123 B.C.). Poem excerpts are reprinted with permission from SIU Press.

      “Adultery

      He built a hurricane for me. You had the same chance

      to hunt in me. Idiot. How you missed my heart

      in its throbbing coat, I will never know.

      “Stealing

      Yes, I ate them. The red bean, a roiling surf

      on my tongue turned to mud

      only because you found out.

     “Bareness

     Something is thundering in my body.

     You can hear it in the soil, bulbs breaking out into a cathedral.

    Talking too much

    I still mean what I did not say.”

      Chang’s other poems reveal her left and right-brain leanings. In one, she rattles off a mathematical equation in the middle of her prose, and in another she cites the renowned painter Edward Hopper. Her recent book, “Circle,” covers another more depersonalized and outward interest in topics, such as politics.

      “I think people write politics because they feel sense of outrage; I tend to write these poems because I’m a private person and certain atrocities in history really disturbed me, like the Rape of Nanking,” Chang said.

      Chang also wrote about issues related to her former life as an investment banker. “I really didn’t enjoy that work environment,” Chang said. “Corporate greed was ridiculous; it was disconcerting. I wrote about that corporate greed and the strange mentality. Not that there’s nothing wrong with it, but more when they do something illegal, money laundering.”