The University of Iowa International Writing Program (IWP), the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and Prairie Lights Books will host a reading to commemorate the life and works of Irish poet Seamus Heaney, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 8, in Room 100 of Phillips Hall on the UI campus.

The event is free and open to the public.

Readers at the event will include IWP residents Martin Dyar, Dmitry Golynko, Teemu Manninen, and Patrícia Portela; IWP director Christopher Merrill; Iowa Writers’ Workshop faculty James Galvin and Mark Levine; and Writers’ Workshop visiting faculty Michele Glazer, Richard Kenney, and D.A. Powell.

Heaney is widely recognized as one of the major poets of the 20th century. A native of Northern Ireland, Heaney was raised in County Derry, and later lived for many years in Dublin. He was the author of more than 20 volumes of poetry and criticism, and edited several widely used anthologies. He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1995 “for works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which exalt everyday miracles and the living past.” Heaney taught at Harvard University (1985-2006) and served as the Oxford Professor of Poetry (1989-1994). He died in 2013.

The Iowa Writers’ Workshop is a graduate program in the University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all UI-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to attend this reading,contact the International Writing Program in advance at 319-335-0128.

For a UI arts calendar and details about upcoming events visit the Arts Iowa website.