1. Mary Oliver^W
2. Carolyn Kizer^W
3. Marilynne Robinson^W
4. Michelle Obama’s speech about Fear
5. Raymond Carver^W
6. Youssoupha
7. Ma Rainey^W
8. Edith Piaf^W
9. Judith Warner, NYT
10. Ugly Betty (the character)

“Your question is great and it kind of weirded me out because it is exactly one that I have been asking myself for MONTHS now as I try to finish up my Master’s Thesis in English Lit.”