An Evening with Joy Harjo
Wednesday, October 29, 7:00 pm
Porter Center for Performing Arts, Brevard College
Doors open at 6:30 pm
The Fall 2025 J.R. McDowell Speaker will be Joy Harjo, the 23rd Poet Laureate of the United States and the first Native American to hold the position. A poet, musician, and author of nine books of poetry and several works of prose, Harjo has received numerous honors including the Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Ivan Sandrof Lifetime Achievement Award. Her work blends poetry, song, and storytelling to illuminate themes of resilience, identity, memory, and our relationship with the natural world.
In addition to her groundbreaking tenure as U.S. Poet Laureate, Harjo has performed internationally as a saxophonist and singer and is widely recognized for the way she connects personal history with collective experience. Her presentations invite reflection and renewal, offering audiences a powerful vision of creativity as a force for healing. Her newest memoir will be released in early October.
Free general admission tickets will be available at the Transylvania County Library beginning Wednesday, October 1. Following the talk, Highland Books will have copies of Harjo’s books available for sale and signing.
Sponsored by the Transylvania County Library Foundation in collaboration with Brevard College, the McDowell Series brings distinguished speakers to our community to share diverse and thought-provoking perspectives.
