BOA Blog

[caption id="attachment_381" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Melissa Hall. BOA Development Director."][/caption] Thank you to all who have contributed to our annual campaign so far. To date we have received over $28,500 in donations. We’re on our way to our goal of $40,000 but not quite there yet. As book sales only fund 40% of our annual budget, the annual campaign is an extremely important source of funding for us. As a not-for profit independent literary publisher, we depend on you to help us continue our mission of fostering readers and bringing high quality literature to the public. And high quality literature it...

[caption id="attachment_373" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Sharon Bryan. BOA poet."][/caption] Gently Read Literature has emerged as one of those increasingly rare breeds - an intelligent review publication that takes the time to publish in-depth, comprehensive reviews of poetry and fiction. It doesn't matter whether a publication is online or in-print, any venue publishing thoughtful reviews these days should be celebrated and supported. We're thrilled to have Sharon Bryan's Sharp Stars (winner of the Isabella Gardner Poetry Award for 2009) reviewed by J. Michael Wahlgren for the current issue of Gently Read Literature. The review starts: "In Sharp Stars, Sharon Bryan is concerned...

[caption id="attachment_369" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Naomi Shihab Nye. BOA Poet. Chancellor."][/caption] Everyone here at BOA joins together with Naomi Shihab Nye's many fans to wish her congratulations on being nominated as Chancellor of Academy of American Poets. In addition to being a stellar poet, Naomi is a passionate advocate for poetry - and also a warm, compassionate person. The Academy chose well! Here is the official press release from the Academy of American Poets: New York, January 11--Tree Swenson, Executive Director of the Academy of American Poets, announced that Naomi Shihab Nye and Marie Ponsot have been elected to the Board...

[caption id="attachment_360" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Santo Domingo Launch of Praises & Offenses"][/caption] BOA translator Judith Kerman just returned from the launch event for Praises & Offenses: Three Women Poets from the Dominican Republic held in Santo Domingo. The event featured Kerman alongside Praises & Offenses poets Angela Hernández Núñez and Ylonka Nacidit-Perdomo (the third contributor, Aida Cartagena Portalatín, is deceased). Also in attendance were the Cultural Attache of the US Embassy and a literature official from the Ministry of Culture. For Spanish-speakers, there is an extensive article about the event here: TRES POETAS DOMINICANAS Judith Kerman has also agreed to guest-blog...

[caption id="attachment_354" align="alignleft" width="130" caption="Lucille Clifton reading at 2007 Dine & Rhyme"][/caption] Each year, BOA hosts an event called Dine & Rhyme in Rochester, NY. It's a fundraising event - but it's also a chance to bring a BOA author to town and gather local BOA supporters all under one "tent." In 2007, Lucille Clifton was our featured BOA author (there was also an outstanding introductory reading by Poulin Prize-winning author Dan Albergotti). We captured the event on video and you can watch the whole thing at the below link. Enjoy! http://boaeditions.org/Video/LucilleCliftonFlash/LucilleClifton.html