Johnette Downing, a local author of children’s books as well as a new book of haiku for grown-ups titled Singing Waters, A Selection of Haiku, Senryu and Haibun, will read her poems and then conduct a haiku workshop for adults, at 2 p.m., Saturday, April 13 at the Old Metairie Library, 2350 Metairie Road.

This event is free of charge and is open to the public. There is no registration.

This writing workshop will illustrate the modern Western approach to haiku which Downing defines a: a short, unrhymed, one breath poem of Japanese origin consisting of 17 syllables or fewer, written in three lines or fewer, with two concrete images separated by a pause in juxtaposition relating nature to human nature. Participants will see examples of modern Western haiku, engage in a haiku writing game, and will be encouraged to explore and write haiku as a group and as individuals.

Launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996, National Poetry Month is a special occasion that celebrates poets’ integral role in our culture and that poetry matters.

For more information regarding this presentation, contact Chris Smith, Manager of Adult Programming for the library, at 504-889-8143 or wcsmith@jefferson.lib.la.us.

The Jefferson Parish Library system consists of 16 locations that stretch from the Lakeshore Branch on the edge of Lake Pontchartrain to the Grand Isle Branch just steps away from the Gulf of Mexico. The library system consists of two large regional libraries and seven branches on each side of the Mississippi River. The East Bank Regional Library (4747 West Napoleon Avenue, Metairie) serves as library headquarters. More than 200 employees work for the Jefferson Parish Library including librarians, administration and support staff. For more information, contact the library at (504) 838-1100 or www.jefferson.lib.la.us.