James Laughlin (1914-1997) in 1963. Photo by Alex Joins. Licensed under Creative Commons, courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
The James Laughlin Award, formerly the Lamont Poetry Prize, is given annually for a poet's second published book; it is the only major poetry award that honors a second book. The award is given by the Academy of American Poets, and is noted as one of the major prizes awarded to younger poets in the United States.[1] In 1959, Harvey Shapiro referred to the award as "roughly, a Pulitzer for bardlings."[2]
History[]
The award was first established in 1954 by a bequest from the wife of Thomas W. Lamont, who specified that it be used "for the discovery and encouragement of new poetic genius."[3] In 1959, Harvey Shapiro referred to the award as "roughly, a Pulitzer for bardlings."[4] Initially, the Lamont Poetry Selection was awarded to a poet's first published book; copies of the book were purchased from its publisher for distribution to the Academy's members. In 1975, the Academy changed to selecting a poet's second published volume; in an editorial, Peter Davison welcomed the change, suggesting that publishing a second volume was becoming more difficult than publishing the first.[5]
In 1995, it was endowed by a gift from the Drue Heinz Trust, and it was renamed to honor James Laughlin, who founded the publishing house New Directions in 1936.[6] At present, winners receive a cash prize of $5,000 and the Academy purchases about 3000 volumes of the winning book for distribution to its membership;[6][7] the purchase and distribution essentially guarantee that the book becomes "a bestseller in the tiny poetry market."[8]
Edward Field has described the importance of receiving the Award to his career as follows:[9]
... perhaps it is just as well that I didn't succeed in getting a publisher earlier, since, with new poems being added all the time, the manuscript kept getting stronger. But years of rejection took their toll, and when I won the Lamont Award in 1962, I kept repeating "I will not be consoled." But I was. My life changed considerably. For one thing, I could make a living - I gave poetry readings around the country, wrote narrations for a couple of documentary films, translated a book of Eskimo poems, and, yes, even taught poetry workshops for a while.—Edward Field
Several of the Award's recipients have subsequently won the highest honors given to poets. Donald Hall was named Poet Laureate of the United States in 2004. Donald Justice, Lisel Mueller, and Philip Schultz have each won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry.
Laughlin Award Winners (1996-present)[]
This partial listing is taken from the website of the Academy of American Poets.[6]
Lamont Poetry Selections (1976-1995)[]
Lamont Poetry Selections (1954-1975)[]
For the first 20 years, a poet's first published volume was the annual Lamont Poetry Selection.
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See also[]
- American poetry
- List of poetry awards
- List of literature awards
- List of years in poetry
- List of years in literature
References[]
- ↑ Beach, Christopher (1999). Poetic Culture. Northwestern University Press. p. 40. ISBN 9780810116788. http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=96T11PV4qosC&oi=fnd&pg=PR11&ots=YYbA58D7MG&sig=m5wfHbfnL0pC_mYMG8M1c8Qg054#PPA40,M1. "The vast majority of those winning the major awards for younger poets over the last two decades (Guggenheims, Lamont prizes, the National Poetry Series, for example) have held graduate degrees in creative writing."
- ↑ Shapiro, Harvey (August 9, 1959). "The Timbre of Three New Voices". The New York Times. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0A14FE3E5F1A7B93CBA91783D85F4D8585F9. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
- ↑ Henderson, Jeanne J. (1973). Literary and Library Prizes. Bowker. ISBN 978-0-8352-0645-7.
- ↑ Shapiro, Harvey (August 9, 1959). "The Timbre of Three New Voices". The New York Times. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0A14FE3E5F1A7B93CBA91783D85F4D8585F9. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
- ↑ Davison, Peter (April 20, 1975). "The Nurture of Poets: The Guest Word". The New York Times. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10F1FFE3E58177B8EDDA90A94DC405B858BF1D3. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "James Laughlin Award". Academy of American Poets. http://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/109. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
- ↑ "Literary Awards". Council of Literary Magazines and Presses. http://www.clmp.org/resources/lit_awards.html. Retrieved 2009-04-05.
- ↑ Miller, Judith (December 2, 1996). "As Arts Prizes Multiply, So Do Doubts on Value". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1996/12/02/theater/as-arts-prizes-multiply-so-do-doubts-on-value.html?sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all.
- ↑ Field, Edward (1998). A Frieze for a Temple of Love. David R. Godine. p. 184. ISBN 978-1-57423-067-3. http://books.google.com/?id=8xF2kwZnS24C.
- ↑ Academy of American Poets > Jennifer K. Sweeney Receives the James Laughlin Award
- ↑ Five Berkeley Authors Win Northern California Book Awards, Berkeley Daily Planet, April 30, 2009
- ↑ the true keeps calm biding its story Ahsahta Press, 2007
- ↑ Sharon Olds Receives Lamont Poetry Award New York Times, September 18, 1983
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