September – A United Kingdom examination board, Assessment and Qualifications Alliance, asks schools to withdraw copies of its anthology which contain the poem, Education for Leisure by Carol Ann Duffy after some teachers complained about the poem's reference to knives. Other teachers oppose the move, and Duffy responds with a new poem, Mrs Schofield's GCSE.[1]
December 15 – The American Academy of Arts and Sciences begins awarding the May Sarton prize. Five "emerging poets" each year will receive a $2,000 honorarium and an opportunity to have their work published in the Academy's journal, Daedalus (for winners, see "Awards and honors" section, below).[2]
Dennis Brutus is awarded the Lifetime Honorary Award by the South African Department of Arts and Culture for his lifelong dedication to African and world poetry and literary arts.[3] Brutus was also an activist who was imprisoned and incarcerated in the cell next to Nelson Mandela's on Robben Island from 1963 to 1965.[4]
Dmitry Vodennikov wins a Russian poetry competition television show, "King of the Poets".[6]
POETomu (a play on the English word "poet" and the Russian word poetomu ("because")), a glossy magazine about poetry, is founded in Russia.[6]
Works published in Englishedit
Listed by nation where the work was first published and again by the poet's native land, if different; substantially revised works listed separately:
Australiaedit
Robert Adamson, The Golden Bird, winner of the C. J. Dennis Prize for Poetry in the 2009 Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, shortlisted for the 2009 Age Book of the Year Awards
Zachariah Wells, editor, Jailbreaks: 99 Canadian Sonnets, (Biblioasis) ISBN 978-1-897231-44-9
India, Indian poetry in Englishedit
Antony Theodore, Divine Moments : Journey through the Year, ISBN 978-14-343562-3-9
Arundhathi Subramaniam, translator, The Absent Traveller: Prākrit love poetry from the Gāthāsaptaśatī of Sātavāhana Hāla, New Delhi: Penguin India, ISBN 0-14-310080-7[10]
Bibhu Padhi, poet, Going to the Temple, ISBN 978-81-727340-3-9
Eunice de Souza, editor, Both Sides of the Sky, Post-Independence Poetry in English, New Delhi: National Book Trust, ISBN 978-81-237-5331-7[11]
Vladimir Nabokov (posthumous), edited by Brian Boyd (New Zealand academic) and Stanislav Shvabrin, ' 'Verses and Versions: Three Centuries of Russian Poetry Selected and translated by Vladimir Nabokov' ', English translations of Russian poetry, presented next to the Russian originals, Harcourt (published in the United States)
Sam Sampson, Everything Talks, Auckland University Press and Shearsman Books; winner of the 2009 New Zealand Society of Authors Jessie Mackay Best First Book Award for Poetry
Best New Zealand Poetry 2007edit
The year's guest editor, who chose 25 poems for inclusion, was Paula Green. The list appeared at the series website in February 2008.[17]
Annemarie Austin, Very: New and Selected Poems, Bloodaxe Books, Bloodaxe Books[18]
Mourid Barghouti, Midnight and Other Poems, translated by Radwa Ashour, Palestinian poet published in the United Kingdom (Arc Publications), ISBN 978-1-906570-08-8
Rab Wilson, Life Sentence: More Poems Chiefly in the Scots Dialect (Luath Press Ltd) ISBN 978-1-906307-89-9
Anthologies in the United Kingdomedit
Lesley Duncan, editor, 100 Favourite Poems of the Day (Luath Press Ltd) ISBN 978-1-906307-08-0
Mark Richardson, editor, The Big Green Poetry Machine Poems from Scotland (Young Writers) ISBN 978-1-84431-787-5
Jeet Thayil, editor, The Bloodaxe Book of Contemporary Indian Poets, Bloodaxe Books ISBN 978-1-85224-801-7[18]
Forward Book of Poetry 2009 (published October 2008), Faber and Faber, ISBN 978-0-571-24396-9
Criticism, biography and scholarship in the United Kingdomedit
Bloodaxe Poetry Lectures: a series of talks by poets at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne about the craft and practice of poetry, published by Bloodaxe Books:
Rusty Morrison, true keeps calm biding its story, Small Press Distribution, ISBN 978-0-916272-98-2.
George Oppen, Selected Prose, Daybooks, and Papers (edited by Stephen Cope), (University of California Press) (publication was 2007, but not available until 2008)
Richard Tayson, The World Underneath (Kent State University Press, ISBN 978-0-87338-948-8)
David Wagoner, A Map of the Night (University of Illinois Press, ISBN 978-0-252-07567-4)
Francis X. Walker, When Winter Come: The Ascension of York, University of Kentucky Press
John Witte, Second Nature, University of Washington Press, ISBN 978-0-295-98859-7
Mark Yakich, The Importance of Peeling Potatoes in Ukraine, Penguin
Anthologies in the United Statesedit
Tina Chang and Nathalie Handal, editors, Language for a New Century: Contemporary Poetry from the Middle East, Asia, and Beyond, W. W. Norton & Company, ISBN 978-0-393-33238-4
Vladimir Nabokov (posthumous), edited by Brian Boyd and Stanislav Shvabrin, Verses and Versions: Three Centuries of Russian Poetry Selected and translated by Vladimir Nabokov, English translations of Russian poetry, presented next to the Russian originals, Harcourt
Nguyen Do and Paul Hoover, editors, Black Dog, Black Night, anthology of contemporary Vietnamese poetry from 21 poets, many of whom had never previously been translated into English; Milkweed ISBN 978-1-57131-430-7[25]
Leslie Pockell and Celia Johnson, editors, 100 Poems to Lift Your Spirits, Grand Central Publishing, ISBN 978-0-446-17795-5
Reginald Shepherd, editor, Lyric Postmodernisms: An Anthology of Contemporary Poetries, Counterpath Press, ISBN 978-1-933996-06-6
Robert Frost, The Collected Prose of Robert Frost, edited by Mark Richardson; Frost was reluctant to publish his collected prose and even said he lost his notes to the Charles Eliot Norton Lectures he delivered at Harvard in 1936 (Harvard University Press)
Donald Hall, Unpacking the Boxes: A Memoir of a Life in Poetry, Houghton Mifflin
Michael Palmer, Active Boundaries: Selected Essays and Talks, New Directions (New York, NY), 2008. ISBN 0-8112-1754-X
Reginald Shepherd, Orpheus in the Bronx: Essays on Identity, Politics, and the Freedom of Poetry, University of Michigan Press
Jan Ziolkowski and Bridget K. Balint, editors, A Garland of Satire, Wisdom, and History: Latin Verse from Twelfth-Century France (Carmina Houghtoniensia), Harvard University Press, ISBN 0-9765472-7-9 ISBN 9780976547273
Stéphane Bataillon, Sylvestre Clancier and Bruno Doucey, editors, Poésies de langue française: 144 poètes d'aujourd'hui autour du monde ("Poems in the French Language: 144 Contemporary Poets from Around the World"), Éditions Seghurs, ISBN 978-2-232-12305-4, anthology
Yves Bonnefoy, La Longue Chaîne de l'Ancre ("The Anchor's Long Chain"), publisher: Mercure de France
Hélène Dorion, Le Hublot des heures, Paris, Éditions de La Différence; Canadian poet published in France
Haïjin, translated from her Japanese edition, Du rouge aux lèvres ("Red lips"), publisher: La Table Ronde, short poems to be read aloud in a single breath
Philippe Jaccottet, Ce peu de bruits ("This Little Noise"), publisher: Gallimard
Jean-Vincent Verdonnet, Mots en maraude, illustrated by Marie-Claude Enevoldsen-Bussat, Publisher: Voix d'Encre
Canadian poetry in Frenchedit
Roger Des Roches, Dixhuitjuilletdeuxmillequatre, winner of the Prix Chasse-Spleen[26]
Hélène Dorion, Le Hublot des heures, Paris, Éditions de La Différence; Canadian poet published in France
Germanyedit
Christoph Buchwald, series editor, and Ulf Stolterfoht, guest editor, Jahrbuch der Lyrik 2008 ("Yearbook of Poetry 2008"), Frankfurt: Fischer (S.), 215 pages, ISBN 978-3-10-009654-8, anthology
Christoph Janacs:
die Ungewissheit der Barke/la barca sin certidumbre ("The Uncertainty of the Boat"), publisher: Arovell
Nachtwache ("Nightwatch"), Edition Thanhäuser, 37 poems; St. Georgs Presse
Bjoern Kuligk and Jan Wagner, editors, Lyrik von Jetzt 2 ("Poetry of Now 2"), publisher: Berlin Verlag, featuring poetry by 50 authors born after 1969 (a follow-up volume to Lyrik von Jetzt, published in 2003
Steffen Popp, Kolonie zur Sonne: Gedichte ("Colony to the Sun: Poems"), Kookbooks, 59 pages, ISBN 978-3-937445-35-9
Sabine Scho:
Album: Gedichte ("Album: Poems"), Kookbooks, 62 pages, ISBN 978-3-937445-29-8
Farben ("Colors"), Kookbooks, 78 pages, ISBN 978-3-937445-34-2
Greeceedit
Michael Longley, Το χταπόδι του Ομήρου ("The Octopus of Homer"), translated from the original English of the Irish author by Harris Vlavianos, Athens: Patakis
Sarvenaz Heraner, Sarrizha-yi sukut (“Overflowing of Silence”)[37]
Mohammad Reza Shafi'i Kadkani, editor, Gozideh-ye Ghazaliyat-e Shams extensive, annotated selections from Divan-e Shams-e Tabrizi ("The Collected Poems of Shams of Tabriz")by Rumi; Persian, published in Iran[38]
Ru'ya Muqaddas, Ru'yaha-yi 'ashiqanah: 'ashiqanahha-yi Ru'ya ("Loverly Reveries: Love Songs of Ru'ya")[37]
Griffin Poetry Prize: International, in the English Language: John Ashbery, Notes from the Air: Selected Later Poems (HarperCollins Publishers/Ecco)
Others on the shortlist: David Harsent, Selected Poems 1969–2005 (Faber); Elaine Equi, Ripple Effect: New and Selected Poems (Coffee House Press); Clayton Eshleman, translating from the Spanish by César Vallejo, The Complete Poetry: A Bilingual Edition (University of California Press)
Shortlist: Sujata Bhatt, Pure Lizard (Carcanet); Jane Griffiths, Another Country (Bloodaxe); Jen Hadfield, Nigh-No-Place (Bloodaxe); Mick Imlah, The Lost Leader (Faber), Jamie McKendrick, Crocodiles & Obelisks (Faber); and Catherine Smith, Lip (Smith/Doorstop)
Jerwood Aldeburgh First Collection Prize for poetry:
Shortlist: Paul Batchelor, The Sinking Road (Bloodaxe Books); Ciaran Berry, The Sphere of Birds (Gallery Press); Adam Foulds, The Broken Word (Cape Poetry); Frances Leviston, Public Dream (Picador Poetry); Stephanie Norgate, Hidden River (Bloodaxe Books)
Manchester Poetry Prize: Lesley Saunders and Mandy Coe
The Poetry Center Book Award (2008): – Barbara Guest (awarded posthumously) for The Collected Poems of Barbara Guest (ed. Hadley Haden Guest, Wesleyan University Press); Judge: Eileen Tabios[43]
William Carlos Williams Award: Aram Saroyan for Complete Minimal Poems, published by Ugly Duckling Presse; Judge: Ron Silliman; finalists: Roberta Beary for The Unworn Necklace, published by Snapshot Press; and Eileen Myles for Sorry, Tree, published by Wave Books
April 3 – Andrew Crozier, 64, English poet associated with the British Poetry Revival, with connections to American poetry, who edited volumes by American poet Carl Rakosi After Rakosi's Selected Poems, published in 1941, Rakosi dedicated himself to social work and apparently neither read nor wrote any poetry at all. A letter from Crozier to Rakosi asking about his early poetry was the trigger that started Rakosi writing again. His first book in 26 years, Amulet was published by New Directions in 1967 and his Collected Poems in 1986 by the National Poetry Foundation; of a brain tumour. [9]
April 24 – Jason Shinder, 53 (born 1955), American poet, editor, anthologist and teacher who founded the Y.M.C.A. National Writer's Voice program, one of the country's largest networks of literary-arts centers, at one time an assistant to Allen Ginsberg[52]
May 2 – Ilyas Malayev, 72, Uzbek musician, wedding entertainer and poet. "His performances in stadiums drew tens of thousands of Uzbeks, and his appeal reached beyond his native republic", according to The New York Times.[53]
July 16 – Richard Exner (born 1929) German and American poet, academic and translator who moved to the United States in 1950, then moved to Germany after his retirement[61]
July 9 – Kilin, pen name of Mikiel Spiteri, 90, Maltese poet and novelist; fluent in six languages and published in English, Spanish and other languages[62]
August 25 – Ahmed Faraz, pseudonym of Syed Ahmad Shah, 77 (born 1931), PakistaniUrdu-language poet and son of Agha Syed Muhammad Shah Bark Kohati, a leading traditional poet, from kidney failure[66]
September 28 – Konstantin Pavlov, 75 (born 1933), Bulgarian poet and screenwriter who was defiant against his country's communist regime; When censors prevented his works from being published officially in the country from 1966 to 1976, his popularity didn't wane, as Bulgarians clandestinely copied and read his poems.[72]
December 14 – Tajal Bewas, pen name of Taj Mohammed Samoo, 70 (born 1938), bucolic Sufi poet, novelist, short-story writer, teacher and Pakistani government official[82]
December 15 – Jwalamukhi (pen name of Akaram Veeravelli Raghavacharya), 71 (born 1938), Indian poet and president of the India-China Friendship Association[83]
December 20 – Adrian Mitchell, 74, (born 1934), English poet, playwright, children's author, journalist and political activist, of heart failure[84]
^ ab"Poetry in the News 2008" Archived 2008-08-28 at the Wayback Machine web page at the Poetry Society website, retrieved November 30, 2008
^News release and web page, "Young Poets Recognized by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Five Receive Academy Prize in Honor of May Sarton" Archived 2008-12-31 at the Wayback Machine, December 15, 2008, at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences website, retrieved December 17, 2008
^Poetry and Protest: A Dennis Brutus Reader Publisher's page includes video of Brutus and a remembrance by Amy Goodman
^"Chapter - II From Protest to Prison" (PDF). shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 25, 2018. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
^Curtis, Polly (2008-09-04). "Top exam board asks schools to destroy book containing knife poem". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2016-01-05.
^Web page titled "Anonymous Premonition" Archived 2011-02-26 at the Wayback Machine at the University of Queensland Press website, retrieved July 5, 2010
^ abcdefghijklmnop"Some Favorite Books of 2008: Poetry Foundation Staff Picks" Archived 2008-12-24 at the Wayback Machine entry, December 19, 2008, "Harriet" blog, Poetry Foundation website, retrieved December 31, 2008
^"Joe Rosenblatt: Publications Archived 2011-08-14 at the Wayback Machine," Canadian Poetry Online. Web, Mar. 22, 2011.
^Web page titled "Arundhathi Subramaniam" Archived July 21, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Poetry International website, retrieved July 6, 2010
^Web page titled "Eunice de Souza" Archived September 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Poetry International website, retrieved July 8, 2010
^ abWeb page titled "Meena Alexander" Archived September 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Poetry International website, retrieved July 15, 2010
^Web page titled "Jeet Thayil" Archived July 21, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Poetry International website, retrieved July 10, 2010
^Scharf, Michael, "The Other Mother Tongue", book review, Boston Review, May/June 2010 issue, retrieved July 19, 2010 Archived November 6, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
^ abWeb page titled "Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin" Archived May 19, 2008, at the Wayback Machine at Poetry International website, accessed May 3, 2008
^ abWeb page titled "Literature/Year in Review 2009/English: Other Literature in English" at the Encyclopædia Britannica website, retrieved February 22, 2010
^Web page titled "Best New Zealand Poetry 2007 / Introduction" at the Best New Zealand Poetry website, accessed April 25, 2008
^ abSearch results page: Oxford University Press + 2008 Archived 2011-05-22 at the Wayback Machine, Poets House website, retrieved July 9, 2010
^The publication of Complete Early Poems, (Green Integer) was scheduled for publication in 2008, but as of May 2010 had not appeared. Since she received the Pulitzer Prize for Versed, look for a future publication of this collection which is to consist of Armantrout's early collections, from 1978's Extremities to 1995's Made to Seem.
^ abWeb page titled "Mark Doty Books" Archived May 17, 2008, at the Wayback Machine at Mark Doty website, accessed May 5, 2008
^Farr, Sheila, "Poet ponders life's contrasts in 'The Shadow of Sirius'", book review, October 30, 2010, The Seattle Times, retrieved June 8, 2010
^Web page at the CMU Press website, accessed July 24, 2008
^Web page about Katerina Iliopoulou Archived October 16, 2009, at the Wayback Machine at the Greek Poetry Now website, retrieved January 29, 2010
^Web page about Stamatis Polenakis at the Greek Poetry Now website, retrieved January 29, 2010
^Web page titled "Bharat Majhi" Archived September 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine at the "Poetry International" website, retrieved July 6, 2010
^Web page titled "Jiban Narah" Archived September 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine at the "Poetry International" website, retrieved July 10, 2010
^Web page titled "K. Siva Reddy" Archived September 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine at the "Poetry International" website, retrieved July 11, 2010
^Web page titled "P. P. Ramachandran" Archived 2009-05-15 at the Wayback Machine, Poetry International website, retrieved July 19, 2010
^Web page titled "Raghavan Atholi" Archived February 4, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, Poetry International website, retrieved July 25, 2010
^Web page titled "Rituraj" Archived April 6, 2012, at the Wayback Machine at the "Poetry International" website, retrieved July 12, 2010
^Web page titled "Sitanshu Yashaschandra" Archived September 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine at the Poetry International website, retrieved July 27, 2010
^Web page titled "Teji Grover" Archived April 20, 2012, at the Wayback Machine at the "Poetry International" website, retrieved August 3, 2010
^Web page titled "Literature/Year in Review 2009/Persian", Encyclopædia Britannica website, retrieved February 22, 2010
^Web pages titled "Tadeusz Rozewicz" (in English Archived 2012-03-03 at the Wayback Machine and Polish Archived 2011-07-18 at the Wayback Machine), at the Instytut Książki ("Books Institute") website, retrieved February 28, 2010
^"Recipients of the Golden wreath Award". Struga Poetry Evenings. Archived from the original on 16 July 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2010.
^"El Poeta Indio Subhro Banddyopadhyay Recibe la Beca Internacional de Machado". Comisión Nacional del Centenario de Machado en Soria.
^"The Poetry Center and American Poetry Archives |". poetry.sfsu.edu.
^"Virginia - State Poet Laureate (State Poets Laureate of the United States, Main Reading Room, Library of Congress)". www.loc.gov. Retrieved 2021-12-16.
^Service for Shinder ; Fox, Margalit, "Jason Shinder, 52, Poet and Founder of Arts Program, Dies", obituary, May 3, 2008, The New York Times, retrieved December 11, 2008
^Grimes, William, "Ilyas Malayev, 72, Uzbek Musician and Poet, Dies", obituary, The New York Times, May 7, 2008, retrieved December 11, 2008
^"ITAR-TASS". Archived from the original on 2009-01-15. Retrieved 2008-06-01. (Russian)
^"Diario La Rep blica - Online - Muere de modo extra o el poeta trujillano Alejandro Romualdo Valle". Archived from the original on 2008-06-13. Retrieved 2008-06-30. (Spanish)
^"Paula Gunn Allen". sites.google.com. Archived from the original on October 26, 2020.
^"Peter Rühmkorf: German poet who captured idioms" obituary, Times of London, June 17, 2008; retrieved November 26, 2008
^"Lord Tweedsmuir", obituary, Daily Telegraph, London, July 9, 2008, retrieved December 9, 2008
^Ellen Datlow, "Thomas M. Disch (February 2, 1940 – July 4, 2008)," sff.discuss.obituaries, 2008-07-06, 15:01
^Kittler, Wolf, "Richard Exner 1929 – 2008 / Scholar and Poet", Santa Barbara Independent, December 24, 2008, retrieved January 9, 2009
^"They walked on: The Sunday Times pays tribute to some of the high-profile individuals who passed away in 2008 and whose legacies won't be forgotten", The Times of Malta, December 28, 2008, retrieved same day
^Summary of a Le Monde article [permanent dead link] on Suied's death, August 13, 2008 ("The poet Alain Suied died Thursday in Paris on July 24 due to cancer."), retrieved December 14, 2008
^"Mahmoud Darwish: Palestinian 'poet of the resistance'". The Independent. Aug 10, 2008. Archived from the original on 2022-05-01.
^"'Who Is the Most Lovable' author Wei Wei dies -- china.org.cn". www.china.org.cn.
^Pandya, Haresh, "Ahmed Faraz, Outspoken Urdu Poet, Dies at 77", obituary, The New York Times, September 1, 2008, retrieved December 10, 2008 ("He was earlier reported to have died while being treated in a Chicago hospital after a fall in Baltimore, but he returned to his homeland, where he died.")
^"lhan Berk dies at 90 - Turkish Daily News Aug 30, 2008". Archived from the original on 2008-09-14. Retrieved 2008-09-01.
^Reginald Shepherd: 1963 – 2008; A "cyber-tombeau" at Silliman's Blog by poet Ron Silliman includes comments, tributes, and links
^Tribute at Poetry Foundation Archived 2008-09-14 at the Wayback Machine Shepherd was a frequent contributor to the Poetry Foundation blog called Harriet. Listed here are dozens of tributes and comments from many who were touched in some way by Shepherd and his work
^"John Matshikiza: Poet, actor, journalist and activist". The Independent. London. September 20, 2008. Archived from the original on 2022-05-01.
^"Duncan Glen: Poet, publisher, editor, designer, and excavator of Scottish literature - Obituaries, News - The Independent". Independent.co.uk. Dec 6, 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-12-06.
^No byline, "Konstantin Pavlov, Bulgarian Poet, Is Dead at 75", obituary, Associated Press, September 30, 2008, as it appeared on the website of The New York Times, retrieved December 11, 2008
^"Hayden Carruth: Poet who produced work of 'unapologetic affection'". The Independent. Oct 3, 2008. Archived from the original on 2022-05-01.
^"YLE News". www.yle.fi. Archived from the original on October 8, 2008. Retrieved 2021-12-16.
^"Dağlarca, inventor of modern-day epic Turkish poetry, dies". Archived from the original on 2009-10-07. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
^"Woman Scholar of the Islamic World dies at 72". Tehran Times. Oct 25, 2008.
^Fox, Margalit, "Donald Finkel, 79, Poet of Free-Ranging Styles, Is Dead", obituary, The New York Times, November 20, 2008, retrieved December 10, 2008
^"zoom.hu - Meghalt Gyurkovics Tibor". Archived from the original on 2008-12-05. Retrieved 2008-12-12. (Hungarian)
^"168 Óra Online -". Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2008-12-12. (Hungarian)
^No byline, "Kashmiri poet Altaf Niaz dead", article, Sakaal Times, December 5, 2008, retrieved December 14, 2008
^Australian poet Dorothy Porter dies aged 54 and Dorothy Porter (1954–2008) this "Cyber-tombeau" at Silliman's Blog by poet Ron Silliman includes comments, tributes, and links
^Khaskheli, Jan, id=151776 "Tajal Bewas passes away", The News of Karachi, Pakistan, December 14, 2008, retrieved same day
^"Jwalamukhi dies", Times of India, December 15, retrieved December 14, 2008
^Kustow, Michael, "Poet Adrian Mitchell dies, aged 76: Inspirational poet, playwright and performer who was a natural pacifist", obituary, The Guardian, December 21, 2008, retrieved December 22, 2008
^"Remembering Pioneers Alan Lew and Nanao Sakaki" Archived 2011-05-26 at the Wayback Machine web page at Shambhala Sunspace website, retrieved January 29, 2009
Sourcesedit
Britannica Book of the Year 2009 (events of 2008), published by the Encyclopædia Britannica, online edition (subscription required), "Literature/Year in Review 2008" section