National Poetry Month is just a few days away, and the BOA Editions team can't wait to join in the celebration! This year, we are going all out in the festivities. What better way is there to honor the vital place of poetry in America than with a month-long jubilee?
National Poetry Month Sale
By popular demand, we are bringing back our National Poetry Month sale. All titles in the BOA Bookstore will be on sale during the entire month of April. Use promo code BOAPOETRY18 at checkout to save 40% on your order!
Poetry Moments with WXXI
BOA Editions is excited to once again partner with Rochester's very own public radio station WXXI to celebrate National Poetry Month with a special series of "Poetry Moments" featuring some of your favorite BOA poems read by our staff, board members, and friends.
This year's selections will include classic poems from Lucille Clifton and Louis Simpson, plus new favorites from Chen Chen, Craig Morgan Teicher, Christine Kitano, Marcelo Hernandez Castillo, and more! Poetry Moments will air on WXXI Classical 91.5 throughout the month of April. Stay tuned for a full list of poems along with a link to the audio recordings.
Read Local with Writers & Books and Sean Thomas Dougherty
Rochester, NY—Saturday, April 14
The Writers & Books Read Local series is celebrating National Poetry Month by bringing BOA poet Sean Thomas Dougherty to Rochester for a special reading at Nox Cocktail Lounge on Saturday, April 14th. Sean will read from his brand new collection, The Second O of Sorrow. Copies of Sean's books will be on sale at a discounted price at the event.
Read Local seeks to introduce readers in Rochester to books grown right in their own backyard. It is a book club and event series hosted by Writers & Books in partnership with BOA Editions and Open Letter Press that highlights recent books released by publishing houses based in Rochester.
Visit Writers & Books for more information.
Poetic Proclamations: A Reading with Chen Chen for BOA Editions Day
Rochester, NY—Friday, April 20
BOA Editions, Ltd. is partnering with the City of Rochester to celebrate National Poetry Month with a free reading at the City Hall Atrium (30 Church St, Rochester, NY 14614) by award-winning poet Chen Chen. The event will kick-off with the Mayor's Office issuing a proclamation declaring April 20, 2018, as BOA Editions Day. Poetic Proclamations will begin promptly at 6:00 PM (doors open at 5:30 PM).
Visit our National Poetry Month 2018 page for more details on our Poetic Proclamations event, including a link to RSVP. We hope to see you there!
New Poetry from BOA!
In just a few weeks, BOA will say "Happy birthday!" to three exciting new poetry books, including debut collections by Marcelo Hernandez Castillo and Kai Carlson-Wee. All three titles will be available at booksellers nationwide this April.
Cenzontle by Marcelo Hernandez Castillo (Available April 10)
The Second O of Sorrow by Sean Thomas Dougherty (Available April 10)
Rail by Kai Carlson-Wee (Available April 24)
If you just can't wait to start reading, you can order a copy now from the BOA Bookstore.
Poem in Your Pocket Day
April 26th is Poem in Your Pocket Day! Select a poem, carry it with you, and share it with others at schools, bookstores, libraries, parks, workplaces, street corners, and on social media using the hashtag #pocketpoem.
To help you get ready for Poem in Your Pocket Day, BOA will post printable—and #shareable—versions of some of our favorite poems to our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram feeds between April 22–26 for you to download, print, share, and enjoy.
BOA Author Events
Several of our authors will be giving readings, book signings, lectures, and attending other literary events throughout the month of April. Check out the events map on our website to see if a BOA author will be at an event near you!
Good Woman Anniversary Giveaway!
BOA is thrilled to announce that we are celebrating the 30th anniversary of Lucille Clifton's Pulitzer-nominated Good Woman: Poems and a Memoir by releasing a deluxe eBook edition of this groundbreaking collection! This deluxe eBook includes a brand new foreword by Aracelis Girmay along with an expanded photo section featuring previously unpublished photographs from the Lucille S. Clifton Estate.
The 30th anniversary deluxe eBook edition of Good Woman: Poems and a Memoir will be on sale at eBook retailers on April 17. To help launch this anniversary eBook, BOA will be holding a special giveaway this spring. Visit the Clifton Giveaway page for eligibility details and a list of prizes.
won't you celebrate with me
what i have shaped into
a kind of life? i had no model.
born in babylon
both nonwhite and woman
what did i see to be except myself?
i made it up
here on this bridge between
starshine and clay,
my one hand holding tight
my other hand; come celebrate
with me that everyday
something has tried to kill me
and has failed.
—Lucille Clifton, from The Collected Poems of Lucille Clifton 1965–2010
We hope you will celebrate National Poetry Month with us all month long!
