Wednesday, July 9
Geoffrey Gatza @ The Rooftop Poetry Club

As editor and publisher of BlazeVOX books, Geoffrey Gatza has been a godsend to local authors, championing their work and providing an avenue by which their work reaches the world outside Buffalo’s tight literary ecosystem. Through BlazeVOX, Gatza—also an accomplished chef and a former Marine—has won a number of awards recognizing the imprint’s eclectic stable of talents. Gatza does his own writing too—he’s the author of five books of poetry, and his sixth, Not So Fast Robespierre, will be released later this year. This Wednesday he reads work from the new book at the Rooftop Poetry Club, which hosts Wednesday evening readings every week this month on the second-floor outdoor courtyard at Buffalo State’s Butler Library. (Gary Earl Ross kicked off the month of readings on July 2—check the Web site below for the full roster of readers.) It’s another must-do this summer: open-air poetry. Gatza will be joined by Rich Owens and Mike Sikkema. In case of rain, the reading will be held in the International Students Reading Area, on the third floor of the library.

—geoff kelly

7pm. E. H. Butler Library Rooftop Garden, Buffalo State College, 1300 Elmwood Avenue

(878-6300/buffalostate.edu/library/rooftop).