01 Mon 2 p.m. $15 Poetry Project at St. Mark's www.poetryproject.com.

New Year's Day Marathon Reading. [Previewed in the December issue. See Director Ed Friedman's retrospective on this long-standing event.]

"Global Warming" is this year's installment of Bruce Weber's alternative marathon. [Previewed in the December issue.]

04 Thurs 6:30 p.m. Free The New York Public Library (42^nd St)

2000 National Book Award Winner, Susan Sontag, (In America, Farrar Straus & Giroux). In this novel set in 1876, a group of Polish immigrants to Southern California form the framework for Sontag's inimitable insights on American social issues and identity. Other winners appearing are: Nathaniel Philbrick (In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex, Viking Penguin), Lucille Clifton (Blessing the Boats: New and Selected Poems, 1988-2000, BOA Editions) [BOA Editions Editor/Development Director Thom Ward contributes an essay in the upcoming February issue.] and Gloria Whelan (Homeless Bird, HarperCollins).

10 Wed 6 p.m. National Arts Club www. nationalartsclub . org

Press conference for "Dialogues Across Civilizations Through Poetry", the United Nations 200+ readings project co-coordinated worldwide by Ram Devineni and Larry Jaffe for late March 2001. James Ragan and Joyce Carol Oates read at the UN itself on March 29. www. dialoguepoetry. org

10 Wed 7 p.m. Free 92nd St Y www. 92ndsty. org.

Writing program open house with Grace Shulman, Molly Peacock et al.

13 Sat 3 p.m. $5 Baggot Inn: The Unnamable Poetry Series

[The focus of this month's Series on Series, Steve Bennett's essay is followed by poems by Adam Merton Cooper, Larry Mallory and other regulars. We will be recording the Jan 13^th session.]

14 Sun 1 p.m. $25 Chelsea Hotel www. 92ndsty. org.

Tour of the legendary writer's hotel.

14 Sun 7 p.m. $20 92nd St Y www. 92ndsty. org.

"Writers of Substance" Series with Joyce Carol Oates and others.

16 Tues 7 p.m. $7 Poetry Project at St. Mark's www. poetryproject. org.

"Degrees of Nothing: Ron Padgett and the Drawer Principle"

21 Sun 11 a.m. $24 92nd St Y www. 92ndsty. org.

"Biographers and Brunch Series" Focus: William Carlos Williams

21 Sun 6 p.m. Cornelia St Café www. corneliastcafe. com

Lyric Recovery Festival™ at Carnegie Hall poets and musicians perform.

1999 LyR winner, George Dickerson (founding editor-in-chief, RATTAPALLAX) speaks on editing. [Our Series on Series essay on the Cornelia Street Café appears on the November issue of our former location (NYCpoetry.com) and will reappear soon on nycBigCityLit.com, as will all the winning poems from the Carnegie session.]

22 Mon 7:30 p.m. $15 min. Caffè Taci (B'way/110 St)

We record poets from this month's feminist feature, "Because They Did," including Enid Dame, Chocolate Waters, Madeline Tiger and several others. Hosted by Senior Poetry Editor, Nicholas Johnson. Prix fixe dinner option.

Reservations and Info: (718) 624-7305.

Poetry and Mentorship Series: Marie Ponsot, Rachel Hadas and Jessica Greenbaum [See Series Review, this issue, of the latest session which featured Galway Kinnell, Sharon Kraus and Rita Gabis.]

30 Tues 7 p.m. $2 Bluestockings Bookstore Vittoriar @aol. com

Women's Poetry Jam with Sharon Olinka [curator of the Marcel Lounge series] and Diane Spodarek. [Read about the history of the Bluestockings Bookstore and other women's bookstores which have come and gone in the essay by Mary Biggs in this month's "Because They Did" feature.]