Recent Pulitzer Prize recipient and Poet Laureate Ted Kooser will close the 2004-2005 literary season with a lecture Thursday titled “Out of the Ordinary.”

The lecture will be held at 6:45 p.m. in the Montpelier Room of the Library of Congress’ James Madison Building.

Kooser, who will return as the Library of Congress’ Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry for the 2005-2006 literary season, will base his lecture upon his experiences thus far as Poet Laureate.

“This past year, I have immensely enjoyed connecting with people all over the country and talking to them about reading and writing poetry,” he said in a statement.

During his first term, Kooser, with the support of the Poetry Foundation, inaugurated the “American Life in Poetry” program. This program offers a free weekly column to local newspapers around the country featuring a brief poem by a living American poet and an introduction written by Kooser.

He has also authored a number of poetry books and recently received the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for his book “Delights and Shadows” (2004). His works have received many awards over the years, including the Nebraska Book Award for Nonfiction in 2003 for his book of essays titled “Local Wonders: Seasons in the Bohemian Alps.”

Additional awards and honors that he has received include two National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, the Pushcart Prize, the Stanley Kunitz Prize, the James Boatwright Prize, and a merit award from the Nebraska Arts Council.

The lecture is free and open to the public; no tickets are required. For more information, call (202) 707-5394.

— Amanda Arcuri