Mary Oliver and her dog Ricky, who's not camera-shy. (Photo by Anne Taylor) It’s easy to write bad poetry about dogs. God is dog spelled backwards, pup spelled backwards is still pup, and so on ...

A poem about dog loss can offer comfort, honour cherished memories, and help you navigate the grief of losing a beloved canine companion. Losing a dog is a heart-wrenching experience, one that often ...

So he started writing poems, but didn't show them to anyone. It was Charlie Sheen who got Marciuliano to open up. "A few weeks later, Charlie Sheen had a very public mental breakdown," he says.

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with author Reginald Dwayne Betts about his new collection of poems, "Doggerel," a meditation on family, friendship and falling in love.

Linda Pastan, whose elegantly simple poems found beauty and, sometimes, pain in the ordinary sights and moments of life, died on Jan. 30 at her home in Chevy Chase, Md. She was 90.