BOA Blog

In a piece published by We Wanted to Be Writers, Lee Upton (The Tao of Humiliation), reveals her current list of late night reading material, which includes everything from essays by Margaret Atwood to gardening books by George Schenk. A writer with insightful reading advice, Upton's nightstand stash is the result of her bedside reading manner: "I confess that my bedside reading is not like the other reading I do in the house," says Upton. "The reason is simple: I am a susceptible reader right before bed, when I feel most porous and undefended. And so the books by my bed have,...

Father's Day is just around the corner, so we've put together a list of the best BOA books for the occasion. Whether you're celebrating, remembering, or becoming a father, these books are perfect poetry companions, and make great gifts for the men in your life. Happy Father's Day! Transfer Naomi Shihab Nye Naomi Shihab Nye’s Transfer is called the “best work this much-honored poet has produced to date.” Dealing heavily with the difficult loss of her father, Nye's collection is a process of finding dialogue with him even after his death. “The whole book is a eulogy to the man,”...

Typographical Era has placed Lee Upton's new collection The Tao of Humiliation on its list of "Best New Fiction: May 2014." "Author, poet, essay writer and Pushcart Prize winner Lee Upton returns with new collection of short stories about, you guessed it, humiliation. These 17 solidly structured tales look to investigate the many ways in which we choose to treat each other, and how even though embarrassment can get the better of us at times, it can also be a powerful motivating factor in our everyday lives." Click here to see Typographical Era's entire list of "Best New Fiction: May...

According to a new Publishers Weekly review of The Keys to the Jail, "love lost, love almost lost, landscapes explored (especially those of the mountain West), sex imagined, and sex enjoyed all play their parts in this strongly felt, if sometimes talky, second effort from Kuipers." Noting Kuipers' creative exploration of intensely personal subjects, the review continues: "Her poems about love between women can be her strongest, and her identities complex ... her sense of place serves her sense of how people behave. Fans of Mark Doty, or of Eavan Boland will find a lot here to like, especially once...

Jim Daniels' recent poetry collection Birth Marks has just received the Poetry Gold Medal for the 2014 Independent Publisher Book Awards, AND the Binghamton University Milt Kessler Poetry Book Award! Along with being named a Michigan Notable Book for 2014, these are two of many awards, accolades, and praises Daniels has received for his 14th poetry collection. Conducted annually, the Independent Publisher Book Awards honor the year's best independently published titles from around the world. The awards ceremony will take place on May 28, 2014 in New York, on the eve of BookExpo America. For the Milt Kessler Poetry Book...