dumbfoundry

Nova Scotia poet Anne Simpson was named the Canadian winner of the $40,000 Griffin Poetry Prize for her work Loop, during a raucous ceremony last night in Toronto's historic Distillery district. [...]

Simpson's second collection of poetry, meditative lyric poems illuminating emotional states, was selected by the jury over Di Brandt's Now You Care and Leslie Greentree's go-go dancing for Elvis.

In their praise for Loop, the jury, consisting of former U.S. poet laureate Billy Collins, former New Zealand poet laureate Bill Manhire and Canada's own Governor-General's award-winning poet, Phyllis Webb, released this comment about Simpson's work: “A troubled and generous spirit pervades and inspired Simpson's achievement of craft and lyric in these poems.”

In an International category dominated by American finalists, two from the same publisher, Louisiana State University Press, August Kleinzahler won the $40,000 prize for his work The Strange Hours Travellers Keep.

The other books shortlisted for the International prize were Suji Kwock Kim's Notes From the Divided Country, David Kirby's The Ha-Ha and Louis Simpson's The Owner of the House.

This entry was posted by eeksypeeksy on Friday, June 04, 2004 at 8:38 AM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.