Hey there, I'm Glenn Weldon, and this is NPR's Book of the Day. A poem can be thought of as an act of self-interrogation. After all, writing it is a process of isolation and distillation and concentration. It can become a kind of emotional surgery that slices away the comforting lies we tell ourselves, the facades we hide behind. What's left is what's

essential. That's the whole point. We're going to hear from a couple of poets today. Both of them

have written memoirs that give a bit more room to the kind of ruthless introspection that their

poetry is known for. The results are just as truthful and funny and painful, but they're

surrounded by narratives that add a very human nuance and

context. In a minute, poet and author Kwame Alexander will talk about his latest, a book that

transformed itself in form and in intent during the writing process. But first up, we'll hear

from the poet Maggie Smith, who had one of her poems become an internet sensation a few years back.

That's not supposed to happen.

Memes go viral, but free verse.

It changed her career and her life.

She walks us through all of that.

In her memoir, You Could Make This Place Beautiful.

Here she is with NPR's Miles Parks.

In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.

Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind

closed doors on our new show, Sources and Methods. NPR reporters on the ground bring you

stories of real people helping you understand why distant events matter here at home.

Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.

In 2016, a poem titled Good Bones went viral. You might remember it.

Life is short, though I keep this from my children.

Life is short, and I've shortened mine in a thousand delicious, ill-advised ways,

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