Billy Collins

America's best-known poet, Bill Collins will be making his fifth appearance at the festival. Collins served two terms as Poet Laureate of the United States, and is best-known for a poem commemorating the first anniversary of the World Trade Center disaster on Sept. 11, 2001. It was delivered to a joint session of Congress in New York City on Sept. 6, 2002.

Collins' most recent collection is titled "Dog Show."

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Awards: Guggenheim Fellow, Pushcart Prize, American Acadamy of Arts and Letters

Books:

Dog Show

Poems
Poetry
Random House
November 2025
ISBN 9780593979419
Hardcover, 97 pages

ONE OF OPRAH’S FAVORITE THINGS! NATIONAL BESTSELLER New York Times bestselling author and former U. S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins captures the essence and mystery of dogs in this special collection of poems inspired by our beloved companions, with striking watercolor canine portraits by Pamela Sztybel. As Oprah says on Oprah Daily online: “This collection of 25 poems by Billy Collins is a sweet gift for dog lovers. ‘A Dog on His Master’ is a favorite of mine.” “Everyone who has a dog—or still grieves for one—will find themselves in this collection of witty, sweet and poignant poems by former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins . . [an] eminently giftable collection.”—The Washington Post “There are lots of books about man’s best friend, but none as sweet or as beautiful as Dog Show.”—Air Mail “The pleasures here are many for Collins fans, dog lovers, and any reader looking for clever, poignant, and spirit-lifting poems accompanied by deft, lively, and affectionate paintings.”—Booklist Billy Collins’s Dog Show celebrates the joy of our canine best friends, honoring the love we feel for the animals who play such vital roles in our lives. In twenty-five poems, Collins distills the many ways dogs warm our hearts, from the happiness we experience as we watch a dog run unencumbered by our burdens, to the silliness of cradling a dog in our arms as we step on the scale together. Turning his inimitable eye and ear to the complexities of dog behavior, Collins ponders all that these winning creatures give us and what we learn from them about ourselves. For more than four decades Collins has delighted readers with his insight, wit, and clear poetic voice. In Dog Show, “America’s favorite poet” (The Wall Street Journal) illuminates America’s favorite pet (sorry, cat lovers). Accompanied by Pamela Sztybel’s watercolors, which effortlessly depict a dog’s humble grace, Dog Show reveals the profound role these majestic animals play in our lives and the meaning they give us. More/less

Water, Water

Poems
Poetry
Random House
September 2025
ISBN 9780593731048
Paperback, 145 pages

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the former Poet Laureate of the United States and New York Times bestselling author of Aimless Love comes a wondrous new collection of poems focused on the joys and mysteries of daily life. “Among the best poems that [Billy] Collins has ever written.”—Maureen Corrigan, NPR“Witty, wry and tender when it hurts, Water, Water is a pleasure to read and easy to give.”—The Washington Post“Collins remains the most companionable of poetic companions.”—The New York TimesOne of People’s Best New BooksIn this collection of sixty new poems, Billy Collins writes about the beauties and ironies of everyday experience. A poem is best, he feels, when it begins in clarity but ends with a whiff of mystery. In Water, Water, Collins combines his vigilant attention and respect for the peripheral to create moments of delight. Common and uncommon events are captured here with equal fascination, be it a cat leaning to drink from a swimming pool, a nurse calling a name in a waiting room, or an astronaut reciting Emily Dickinson from outer space. With his trademark lyrical informality, Collins asks us to slow down and glimpse the elevated in the ordinary, the odd in the familiar. It’s no surprise that The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal both call Collins one of America’s favorite poets.The Monet ConundrumIs every one of these poemsdifferent from the othershe asked himself,as the rain quieted down,or are they all the same poem,haystack after haystackat different times of day,different shadows and shades of hay? More/less