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Poetry And Hoops: 'Fast Break To Line Break'

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Basketball, like many sports, has been called "poetry in motion." In the new collection of essays Fast Break To Line Break, several poets, including editor Todd Davis, describe how the sport and the artform intersect. Davis and contributor Jack Ridl spoke with Bill Littlefield about the anthology.


Bill's thoughts on Fast Break To Line Break:

Todd Davis is a poet who's been a basketball player and basketball coach, and he's the editor of this anthology of essays written by other poets who all have some connection to basketball. Lots of them find intriguing similarities between the two endeavors. Both can be transcendent, and both are frequently humbling. Rhythm is necessary to both, and each requires dedication.

The poets who contribute essays to this collection do a much better job than I'm doing of making a case for the various connections between their two passions. They've all been rejected by editors, and also by people who could jump higher than they could shoot. They've all found that sometimes poetry and basketball come easily, and at other times their minds are empty of metaphor and their feet can't get out of each other's way.

Fast Break To Line Break will enhance the open-minded (not to say unguarded) reader's appreciation for both poetry and basketball.

This segment aired on August 18, 2012.

Headshot of Bill Littlefield

Bill Littlefield Host, Only A Game
Bill Littlefield was the host of Only A Game from 1993 until 2018.

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