BOA Blog

When it comes to having the right words, Kevin Young says that we need not look any further than Lucille Clifton. As co-editor of The Collected Poems of Lucille Clifton 1965-2010, Young had the opportunity to explore the deeper layers of Ms. Clifton's poems. In a Baltimore Magazine exclusive interview, he says: "Seeing Lucille Clifton’s work all together, I was amazed at the sheer breadth of it—both in terms of how much work she made, but also the ways in which it all adds up to something greater. I knew this instinctively, but it’s another thing to read so much...

It was a good weekend for The Collected Poems of Lucille Clifton 1965-2010! In the September 1 issues of both Library Journal and Booklist, the 'Collected Clifton' received two rave reviews - one of them *starred.* Ellen Kaufman's *starred* Library Journal review of the landmark collection suggests that Ms. Clifton invokes through her poetry "'lost people'" and "'lost poems' that have fallen off the map into the mouths of dragons," and that the late poet "imagined for those who couldn’t or wouldn’t—the racist, the incestuous father, the victim, the tired, the poor, the overlooked, the dead, and her own buried...

Lafayette College has proudly announced the big news that its own Lee Upton has won the 2nd Annual BOA Editions Short Fiction Prize! Upton's The Tao of Humiliation is a collection that impressed BOA Publisher and prize judge Peter Conners with its ability to expose the "complexity of human emotions buried in even our simplest interactions."  Conners says of the collection: "Upton tells a great story, yes, but she never bows to easy answers or pre-packaged characterizations...To write with such skill and sensitivity takes great life experience and the patience of a master writer." Upton has had the ability to...

Guess who is talking about Craig Morgan Teicher and his latest book To Keep Love Blurry? Well, from the looks of it...everyone. If you haven't subscribed to Poets & Writers Magazine yet, now is the time to do it. In its current September/October issue is a fantastic interview with both Teicher and his wife Brenda Shaughnessy, who also has a book being published this month. Here is a synopsis of the piece from the magazine: "After navigating a devastating crisis, husband-and-wife poets Craig Morgan Teicher and Brenda Shaughnessy reflect on the fortifying powers of poetry and their commitment to their...

Tickets for BOA's 2012 Dine & Rhyme are now available. If you will be in the Rochester, NY area on Sunday, September 23, you will not want to miss this fantastic event! Dine & Rhyme is BOA’s annual fundraiser, consisting of a poetry reading and book signing by nationally recognized BOA poets followed by a reception, dinner, and silent auction. All proceeds from the event go toward the publication of BOA books. As an independent publisher, we rely on grant funding from public and private sources as well as individual contributions to make the publication of our wonderful books possible...