Laura Kasischke Wins NBCC Poetry Award

Laura Kasischke won the coveted National Book Critics Circle Award, http://bookcritics.org/ March 8, 2012 in New York City. Her book, Space, in Chains, also won the first annual University of North Texas Rilke Prize. This $10,000 prize recognizes “a book written by a mid-career poet and published in the preceding year that demonstrates exceptional artistry and vision.” Congratulations to Copper Canyon Press, which continues to publish some of the best American literature. https://www.coppercanyonpress.org/

The title poem shows her original, accreted lines of narrative and lyric force. She shifts from snapshots that appear all too mortal—a man collapsing, for example. She focuses on fleeting moments, not a new theme in poetry—tempus fugit. But her voice is completely modern. After reciting a catalogue of life that will die, she declares, “I’m not endorsing it.” Chains here are not only mortality, but also the links from one moment to the next—what continues.

Space, in Chains

Things that are beautiful, and die. Things that fall asleep in the afternoon, in
sun. Things that laugh, then cover their mouths, ashamed of their teeth. A
strong man pouring coffee into a cup. His hands shake, it spills. His wife falls
to her knees when the telephone rings. Hello? Goddammit, hello?

Where is their child?

Hamster, tulips, love, gigantic squid. To live. I'm not endorsing it.

Any single, transcriptional event. The chromosomes of the roses. Flagella,
cilia, all the filaments of touching, of feeling, of running your little hand
hopelessly along the bricks.

Sky, stamped into flesh, bending over the sink to drink the tour de force of
water.

It's all space, in chains—the chaos of birdsong after a rainstorm, the steam 
rising off the asphalt, a small boy in boots opening the back door, stepping
out, and someone calling to him from the kitchen,
 
Sweetie, don't be gone too long.

From the book: Space, in Chains by Laura Kasischke, reprinted from the Copper Canyon “Share” site https://www.coppercanyonpress.org/pages/browse/book.asp?bg=%7B611CDCE2-12CA-4B02-8BB4-6D53A73B73D2%7D Poetry Foundation Link http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/laura-kasischke University of Michigan link http://www.lsa.umich.edu/english/grad/mfa/mfaFacDetail.asp?ID=964 

Laura Kasischke teaches at the University of Michigan. Besides Space, in Chains, she has published 7 books of poetry: Lilies Without (Ausable Press, 2007); Gardening in the Dark (Ausable Press, 2004); Dance and Disappear (University of Massachusetts Press, 2002); What It Wasn't (Carnegie Mellon University Press, 2001); Fire & Flower (Alice James Books, 1999); Housekeeping in a Dream (Carnegie Mellon University Press, 1995); Wild Brides (New York University Press, 1991). Her poetry has been published in Harper's, American Poetry Review, Poetry, Kenyon Review, Georgia Review, and Pushcart anthologies.

She is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, two National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, the Bobst Award for Emerging Writers (NYU Press), Beatrice Hawley Award, Juniper Award (Univ. of Massachusetts Press), Alice Fay DiCastagnola Award (Poetry Society of America). She has also published 8 novels, including The Raising (Harpers, 2011); In a Perfect World (novel, Harpers, 2009); Be Mine (Harcourt, 2007); Boy Heaven(novel for young adults, HarperCollins, 2006); The Life Before Her Eyes (Harcourt, 2002); White Bird in a Blizzard (Hyperion, 1998); and Suspicious River (Houghton Mifflin, 1996).ischke's most recent collection of poems, Lilies Without, was published in 2007 by Ausable Press. She teaches at the University of Michigan. Laura Kasischke's most recent collection of poems, Lilies Without, was published in 2007 by Ausable Press. She teaches at the University of Michigan. Laura Kasischke's most recent collection of poems, Lilies Without, was published in 2007 by Ausable Press. She teaches at the University of Michigan.

NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE 5 BEST BOOKS OF POETRY POSTED ON OPRAH SITE

http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Best-Poetry-Books-of-the-Year-Modern-Poetry/1
Follow this link to find the 5 nominated books. My bet: Yusef Komunyakaa, for his 4th dimensional axis that makes his work transcend. We will see what happen soon. Awared are March 8. The Awards Ceremony is free and open to the public.

Reception to follow at Lang Center, 55 West 13th Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY. Tickets for the reception are $50.

Space in Chains By Laura Kasischke, Copper Canyon Press; Devotions By Bruce Smith, Phoenix Poets; Core Samples from the World By Forrest Gander, New Directions; The Chameleon Couch By Yusef Komunyakaa, Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Kingdom Animalia By Aracelis Girmay, BOA Editions, Ltd.

Rae Armantrout Wins National Book Critic's Circle Award for 2009

The NBCC just announced this evening that Rae Armantrout's Versed (Wesleyan University Press). She is professor at UC-San Diego

From the Book:

while all the while
the sea breaks
and rolls, painlessly, under.

If we’re not copying it,
we’re lonely.

Is this the knowledge
that demands to be
passed down?

Time is made from swatches
of heaven and hell.

If we’re not killing it,
we’re hungry.

—from “Simple”

Lawrence Panel on National Book Critics Circle "Good Reads"

Posted on Crtical Mass, blog for National Book Critics Circle, Feb. 8

http://bookcriticscircle.blogspot.com/

Panelists and audience looked over the NBCC’s Good Reads Winter List and the 2007 NBCC Awards Finalists list, available as a handout, Feb. 10 as they dialogued about recommended books. They created their own list as they discussed the Kansas City-Lawrence book scene. The panel consisted of NBCC members John Mark Eberhart, Kathleen Johnson, and Denise Low, and independent bookstore owner Pat Kehde.The panel praised the NBCC lists for being driven by quality, noting that the best seller lists of the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, and Chicago Tribune are all driven by profit. The panel noted that 291,000 books are published every year, so these lists really are helpful for helping to sort them. Eberhart, the books page editor of the Kansas City Star, liked the idea of recommended readings rather than books that should get awards. The panel agreed that many of the books on the finalist list were accomplished but less accessible to the general reader. Independent bookstore veteran Kehde, who recently sold her store The Raven to another independent owner, described the New York Times bestseller list process (The Raven is a participating store) and noted that the Lawrence store’s best sellers more closely align with the San Francisco Chronicle list than that of the New York Times. ... (Go to Critical Mass for full article)

Newspapers Abdicate Literacy Responsibility

Newspaper editors struggle to retain readership, yet they do not promote a culture of literacy. I have taught college freshmen English classes for almost forty years, where I see the failing outcomes of high school language skills education. First, 30% of students drop out of high school, according to 2003 Manhattan Institute researchers. Of those who do graduate, only about one-third have college-level skills, including basic literacy. Yet as education levels decrease, newspapers replace their coverage of book news with slick advertising circulars.

Newspapers have had a declining readership for years. In March, 2007, the Wall St. Journal reported an overall decline of 2.6%. In 2006 The New York Times circulation dropped 5.8%, and The Chicago Tribune dropped 12.4%, according to Reuters. Newspapers no longer have the cachet needed to drive sales. I remember when the New York Times book review arrived in our household and we children, as teenagers, searched its pages for new fiction. Novelists like J.D. Salinger and John Updike were like rock stars. I remember reading about Welsh poet Dylan Thomas’s flamboyant stateside tour. This was when literary quality was the prerequisite for review space, rather than advertisers’ leverage. I learned books and authors were important, and this aura of prestige led me to a lifelong love of language. I am honored to be the 2007-2009 Poet Laureate for the state of Kansas.

In addition to teaching English, I review books for newspapers such as the Kansas City Star. In the 1980s, the Sunday edition included a healthy budget for reviewers, and I helped the books editor fill three to four pages. As a local reviewer I could put my own spin on national publications or reflect on local writers’ efforts. I still meet people who remember those early years of the Star’s commitment to books, and my small part. Then costs rose and advertising replaced much of the book section.

I commend the current Star book editor John Mark Eberhart, who makes the most of his allotted space to review local writers or at least briefly note their books. He is one of a handful of editors who publishes poetry every Sunday, even before former U.S. poet laureate Ted Kooser’s syndicated column. Yet I must search through pounds of paper to find the few book pages. In my local newspaper, the Lawrence Journal World, I turn to a section called “Pulse” to find a few reprinted reviews, features about local authors, and, luckily, because of anther enlightened arts editor—Mindie Paget—a poem.

Newspaper publishers seem to forget that it does take an entire village to educate a child. My college students seldom read books, but instead download tunes, send text messages, and surf the web. If they were to read a newspaper, they would dig to find book sections or a few columns related to literary arts. Instead they would find colorful pages designed like web pages, filled with sound-bites about movie stars.

As more news organizations increase online offerings, space is no longer a problem for book editors. On May 19, The Chicago Tribune moves its Books section to the Saturday edition to capture more readership, and additionally they expand the web version to include a blog. My local paper sponsors online author readings and interactive literary chats. These efforts can reestablish some of the former role of newspapers as advocates for book lovers.

I hope all newspaper publishers notice the connection between book culture and their own need for a well educated readership. They have an opportunity to attract new readers and also to affirm their role of educators. New generations need to see that literacy is more than just a job skill, but also entry into an exciting intellectual forum.

National Book Critics Circle Poetry Award

Troy Jollimore won the poetry award this year, with a long narrative poem about a character "Tom Thomson." Thomson is an Everyman struggling with vicissitudes of 21st century life. Jollimore's research and teaching concern ethics, political philosophy, and literature. He directs the Humanities Center at Cal.State Univ.-Chico. He is a visiting faculty fellow at the Stanford Humanities Center this academic year. In my recent travels to Chico I was scheduled to see him read, but got lost on the way to the campus. My sister Jane Ciabattari, vice president of the NBCC board, says he gave a very wonderful reading at the finalists' reception and charmed the audience greatly. My friends Sally and Scott McNall of Chico report great confidence in his abilities. I would note that this selection emphasizes my belief that poets need to have as deep and wide an education as possible--either inside or outside the academy. Poetry is about synthesis of cultural, historical, arts, science, and technological knowledge, and all we interact with as humans. Poets, through well chosen words, help digest the strands of experience into something manageable. Poetry is about cultural survival, a serious business, formed from the lyrical personal encounter.

by Troy Jollimore

Tom Thomson in Hiding Trusts himself less, but more than others do; when he an elevator boards, they stand off to one side and keep an eye on him, suspicious-like; when he picks up a phone a little click lets him know someone else is listening, too. Meanwhile, spy satellites fly so low overhead they almost graze and take away a layer of his skin. He therefore cringes, hunches, don't look up, contemplates fake moustaches and dark shades, scurries from house to car, inside whose tin and plastic shell he feels less vulnerable. There is a war afoot: Intelligence versus intelligentsia. This he knows. Tom Thomson in Love Love pushed him sidewise through the bleary nights. It flew at him like storms. He tried to learn to overcome, to do without, but could, he found, not; nor cigarettes, neither. He stuck to them like glue. Opinions stuck to him and drugged him down into the muck. Always asked he what lay so deep down there – well now he knows: it's him – it's he himself, goes down so far and lies at bottom and takes not one breath all winter, like a turtle. Him, who looks upward through bottoms of glass-bottomed boats and so on into sky, sky up as he is down, sky blue as he, and free as he is not. People say "My friend" to him, but just ironically.