Something Necessary: An Afternoon of Poetry

To read Paul Jones is to behold how there is always “still some place deeper, / some place both dark and alive.” In formally versatile, emotionally visceral poems, he immerses us in the body and spirit of the timeless everyday: tomato sandwiches, watermelons, vape shops, graveyards, basketball, grief, memory, friendship, marriage, poverty, flying kites, and Dolly Parton. Throughout it all, we have the natural world: the animal kingdom, the seas, the air, and the ground right in front of us.

In that emphasis on the everyday, his poetry practices the hope that we might at last “be free from the nation of strangers.” His poems do “the work of roots, / how each strand reaches for its neighbor.” That’s the work we should do too, and we’ve got Paul Jones to point the way, take our hand, and walk with, stepping forward together.
– Andy Fogle, author of Mother Countries and poetry editor of Salvation South

For poems and more see SmallJones.com

was inducted into the NC State Computer Science Hall of Fame in 2021. His poetry has taken an unusual journey beyond Earth—a manuscript of his poems crashed into the moon's surface in 2019, while another lunar mission with his poems aboard successfully landed in February 2024.

Jones’s recent work has appeared in Rattle, Hudson Review, New Verse Review, Salvation South, IEEE Spectrum, Tar River Poetry, and Southern Poetry Review, as well as in anthologies including Best American Erotic Poems (From 1800 to the Present).

His first collection, Something Wonderful, was published by Redhawk Publications in 2021, followed by Something Necessary in September 2024.

Jones is a graduate of the Warren-Wilson College MFA program. He is also professor emeritus of the University of North Carolina's School of Information and Library Science.

For more, visit http://smalljones.com or find him on social media as @smalljones

___________________

Perks for Paid Tickets

• Show your ticket at the Cafe bar to receive
• 18% off beer, wine, cocktails, and non-alcoholic cocktails.
• Offer valid only for paid ticket holders.

Manny’s never turns away anyone for lack of funds. If you need a free ticket, just email "grapefruit" along with the event title to [email protected]

Want to help others attend? Buy a "Pay It Forward" ticket to cover the cost for someone who can’t afford it. Your support helps us keep our events accessible and ensure a diverse audience that reflects San Francisco.