WHAT: "We Met in Beijing", an RASBJ in-person reading by Anthony Tao from his debut English-language poetry book, followed by Q&A

WHEN: 7-8 PM, Wednesday June 5

WHERE: Snow Shop, 18 Xinzhong Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing (address in Chinese: 雪铺咖啡, 东城区东四十条店)

ABOUT THE EVENT: Beijing is a city of multitudes—a place for dreamers and schemers, musicians and migrant workers, techies and teachers, cat ladies and cab drivers —and at the same time, a place for none of them. "We Met in Beijing", Anthony Tao's first poetry collection, is a poignant tribute to the familiar yet fleeting that makes this city. We invite you to join him as he reads from the collection, evoking the dusty streets, the tree-lined alleys, the rooftops and canals, bars and clubs of China's political and cultural nerve center.

As Simon Shieh says, Tao is "a poet in the tradition of Li Bai—a moving chronicler of his times, a foreigner in his own land, and a poet for whom friendship is bittersweet."

In an evening to remember, Tao welcomes us to bring our own memories and share in the exhilaration and heartbreak of putting down roots in this unrelenting metropolis.

'Time left. We stayed.'

ABOUT THE SPEAKER: Born in Beijing, Anthony Tao grew up in Overland Park, Kansas, and graduated with a journalism degree from Northwestern University. He returned to Beijing in 2008 to cover the Olympics for ESPN The Magazine and stayed. He is the managing editor of The China Project. Previously, he was the first editor-in-chief of Radii, the founding editor of Beijing Cream, and two-time coordinator of the China Bookworm International Literary Festival. He has worked an assortment of editing and writing jobs, captained and coached Ultimate Frisbee teams, and hosted events ranging from World Cup-style beer pong to monthly poetry readings for the Spittoon Literary Arts Collective. His poetry has appeared in Rattle, Prairie Schooner, NPR, Frontier, The Cortland Review, among others. He is a founding member of Poetry x Music Band (poetryxmusic.com). His poem "Coronavirus in China," published in Rattle was nominated for a Pushcart Prize.

HOW MUCH: 55 RMB (which includes one free beer) for both RASBJ Members and non-Members

HOW TO JOIN THE EVENT: Please click "Register" or "I will attend" and follow the instructions no later than noon on June 3. If you experience difficulty paying via Wechat, please try Alipay instead. You can also pay by credit card. After successful registration you'll receive a confirmation email with a link to join the event online. If you seem not to have received it, please check your spam folder. Interested in becoming an RASBJ member? Please sign up at https://rasbj.org/membership​

REFUND POLICY: Attendees will be refunded in full if RASBJ cancels this event. Registrations for those who have not paid by noon on June 3 will be cancelled. After noon on June 3, registrants who cannot attend for personal reasons will not be refunded.