Weddings, funerals, inaugurations—public events are the places most people encounter poems. This week, Katie, Tim, and friends take a look occasional poems, reading some by Ada Limon, W.H. Auden, and more along the way. How do they work, and how are they different from what we usually write and share?

After last week's discussion about the need for more poetry criticism, we tried to practice what we preach, taking a careful look at contemporary poems. What is it that makes a good poem great? Katie, Tim and friends discuss, and read four poems in the process: Dick Westheimer's "In Kherson …," Maggie Smith's "Good Bones," Dorianne Laux's "Moon Ghazal," and Noor Hindi's "F- Your Lecture on Craft …."

Poetry criticism: Is there even such a thing, anymore? It seems like William Logan is the last poetry critic willing to take his gloves off and entertain us with strong opinions. But some call him a "serial skewer" and a "pompous ass." Is this kind of criticism harmful or good for poetry? On the other end of the spectrum is the book blurb review, in which friends and colleagues heap on the praise like frosting on cherpumple. Unfortunately there isn't much in between. Why is that? Katie, Tim, and friends discuss!

Just in time for Thanksgiving, this episode features an open mic for poems on gratitude. Katie, Tim and friends share their favorite thankful poems and some of their own, including poems by Mary Oliver, George Bilgere, and more.

The ghazal is one of the most powerful forms of poetry, but also one of the most misunderstood, and it's history and adoption into English feels surprisingly similar to that of haiku. Katie, Tim, and friends discuss form that's been flourishing in Arabic, Persian, and Urdu for almost a thousand years—joined by special guests Shannan Mann and Karan Kapoor.

As Sharon Olds says, "There's not a bad poet in the first grade." Whether the poems are light or heavy, the heart of poetry is a sense of play. Katie, Tim, and friends discuss what it takes to write like a child, sharing some great poems along the way, and joined by especially playful poets Katie Kemple and Doodleslice.

Edgar Allan Poe was a master of the macabre, but also a brilliant metricist, critic, and thinker. Katie, Tim, and friends, including scholar Omer Faruk Karasahan, discuss the legend and the legacy of Poe and his moment in literary history.

Is it possible to write a bad poem? What would it mean for a poem to be good? Should we even talk this way? Katie, Tim, and friends discuss passing judgment on poems, and read some of the worst poems in history in the process.

I’m Nobody. Who are you? This week we take a close look at the loaded gun that is Emily Dickinson, one of the most influential poets in history. Gwendolyn Soper joins Katie, Tim, and friends to talk about queen of the em-dash and the way she changed the poetry world. As always, great poems abound!