Honolulu businessman and poet Wing Tek Lum will be the featured guest at the next Mostly Monthly Reading Series, a special reading event from 1 to 2 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 14, at the University of Hawai‘i–West O‘ahu’s James & Abigail Campbell Library, second-floor exhibition space.
Lum will read from his new book of poetry, “The Oldtimers,” published this year by Bamboo Ridge Press. In addition, there will be interactive activities, Q&A and discussion, snacks, and prize drawings at the event.
According to Bamboo Ridge, “Wing Tek Lum’s third collection of poetry, ‘The Oldtimers,’ imagines life in Honolulu Chinatown circa 1900. Lum gives voice to the forgotten pioneer generation of sojourners and settlers, detailing the trials and temptations of this bachelor society living far from their homeland — their hard work, their diversions, their challenges, and, even amidst the notorious plague and fire, their perseverance.”
Bamboo Ridge Press has published two earlier collections of Lum’s poetry, “Expounding the Doubtful Points” (1987) and “The Nanjing Massacre: Poems” (2012).
The Mostly Monthly Reading Series is presented in collaboration between faculty host Andy Godefroy, an English lecturer at UH West O‘ahu, and the James & Abigail Campbell Library.
Godefroy, who started the reading series in 2013, has said about past events, “This reading series is a great opportunity for our university community to interact with the larger literary community in Hawai‘i.”
The Mostly Monthly Reading Series event featuring Lum is open to UH West O‘ahu students, faculty, and staff, and the general public. Anyone who has questions or would like more info may email godefroy@hawaii.edu.
