The following is a list of selected (mostly American) awards for poetry, along with their recent recipients.

A | B | F | G | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | R | S | W | Y

Aiken Taylor Award for Modern American Poetry

An annual prize, administered by the Sewanee Review and the University of the South, awarded to a writer who has had a substantial and distinguished career. It was established through a bequest by Dr. K.P.A. Taylor, a poet and younger brother of Conrad Aiken.

Daniel Hoffman (2003)
Grace Schulman (2002)
Frederick Morgan (2001)
Eleanor Ross Taylor (2000)
George Garrett (1999)
X. J. Kennedy (1998)
Fred Chappell (1997)
Wendell Berry (1995)

American Academy of Arts and Letters Award of Merit Medal

Thom Gunn (1998)

American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal for Poetry

Given every six years to honor the distinguished career of a poet. The Gold Medal is the academy's highest honor.

W. S. Merwin (2003)
John Ashbery (1997)

American Academy of Arts and Letters Awards in Literature

Given annually to honor and encourage writers in their creative work.

Lynne McMahon (2003)
Gregory Orr (2003)
Tom Sleigh (2003)
Anne Winters (2003)
Linda Gregerson (2002)
Tony Hoagland (2002)
Stanley Plumly (2002)
James Richardson (2002)
Alan Shapiro (2002)
David Ferry (2001)
Alice Notley (2001)
Carl Phillips (2001)
Jonathan Galassi (2000)
David St. John (2000)
Ellen Bryant Voigt (2000)
Ron Padgett (1999)
Sherod Santos (1999)
C. K. Williams (1999)
Edward Hirsch (1998)
Mary Ruefle (1998)
Gjertrud Schnackenberg (1998)
Allen Grossman (1997)
August Kleinzahler (1996)
Paul Muldoon (1996)
Jane Cooper (1995)
Stephen Dunn (1995)
John Haines (1995)
Miller Williams (1995)

American Book Award

Given by the Before Columbus Foundation. American Book Award winners are nominated and selected by a panel of writers, editors, and publishers.

Aaron A. Abeyta (2002)

Colcha (University Press of Colorado)

Dana Gioia (2002)

Interrogations at Noon (Graywolf Press)

Al Young (2002)

The Sound of Dreams Remembered: Poems 1990-2000 (Creative Arts Book Company)

Diana García (2001)

When Living Was a Labor Camp (University of Arizona)

Sandra M. Gilbert (2001)

Kissing the Bread: New and Selected Poems, 1969-1999 (W.W. Norton)

Janet McAdams (2001)

The Island of Lost Luggage (University of Arizona)

Carolyne Wright (2001)

Seasons of Mangoes and Brainfire (Christopher Howell)

Ester G. Belin (2000)

From the Belly of My Beauty (University of Arizona)

Jon Eckels (2000)

Sing When the Spirit Says Sing: Selected and New Poems 1960-1990 (Vision-Victory People Press)

Michael Lally (2000)

It's Not Nostalgia: Poetry and Prose (Black Sparrow)

Andrés Montoya (2000)

The Workers Sing and Other Poems (Bilingual Review Press)

The American Book Award was not given to any poets in 1999.

Allison Adelle Hedge Coke (1998)

Dog Road Woman (Coffee House Press)

Brenda Marie Osbey (1998)

All Saints (Louisiana State University Press)

John A. Williams (1998)

Safari West (Hochelaga Press)

Martín Espada (1997)

Imagine the Angels of Bread (W. W. Norton & Co.)

Alurista (1997)

Et Tú . . . Raza (Bilingual Press)

Dorothy Barresi (1997)

The Post-Rapture Diner (University of Pittsburgh)

Guillermo Gómez-Peña (1997)

The New World Border: Prophecies, Poems and Loqueras for the End of the Century (City Lights Books)

Maria Espinosa (1996)

Longing (Arte Publico)

Kimiko Hahn (1996)

The Unbearable Heart (Kaya Productions)

E. J. Miller Laino (1996)

Girl Hurt (Alice James Books)

Arthur Sze (1996)

Archipelago (Copper Canyon)

Li-Young Lee (1995)

The Winged Seed: A Remembrance (memoir; Simon & Schuster)

Amy Lowell Poetry Travelling Scholarship

Given annually to a U.S.-born poet to spend one year outside North America in a country the recipient feels will most advance his or her work.

Mark Wunderlich (2003)
Rick Hilles (2002)
Nick Flynn (2001)
Richard Foerster (2000)
Phillis Levin (1999)
Elizabeth Macklin (1998)
Caroline Finkelstein (1997)
Craig Arnold (1996)
Mary Jo Salter (1995)

Association of Writers & Writing Programs Award Series

Cash prize and publication by a participating press, for the discovery and publication of new works.

Barbara Hamby (2003)

Babel (University of Pittsburg Press)

Sandra Kohler (2002)

The Ceremonies of Longing (University of Pittsburgh Press)

Gray Jacobik (2001)

Blue Disguises (University of Pittsburgh Press)

Joanie V. Mackowski (2000)

The Zoo (University of Pittsburgh Press)

Connie Voisine (1999)

Cathredral of the North (University of Pittsburgh Press)

Edward Kleinschmidt Mayes (1998)

Works & Days (University of Pittsburgh Press)

Josie Rawson (1997)

Quarry (University of Pittsburgh Press)

Michelle Glazer (1996)

It Is Hard to Look at What We Came to Think We'd Come to See (University of Pittsburgh Press)

Rick Noguchi (1995)

Inside Kenji Takezo the Ocean (University of Pittsburgh Press)

Bollingen Prize

Offered by Yale University every two years to one or more living U.S. poets for the best collection published in that period, or for lifetime achievement in poetry.

Adrienne Rich (2003)

Fox: Poems 1998-2000 (W. W. Norton)

Louise Glück (2001)

Vita Nova (Ecco)

Robert Creeley (1999)

So There and Life & Death (New Directions)

Gary Snyder (1997)

Mountains and Rivers Without End (Counterpoint)

Kenneth Koch (1995)

One Train (Knopf)

Mark Strand (1993)

Dark Harbor (Knopf)

Donald Justice (1991)

New and Selected Poems (Knopf)

Laura Riding Jackson (1991)

The Word "Woman" and Other Related Writings (Persea Books)

Frost Medal for Distinguished Achievement

Offered by the Poetry Society of America to recognize achievement in poetry over a lifetime.

Richard Howard (2004)
Lawrence Ferlinghetti (2003)
Galway Kinnell (2002)
Sonia Sanchez (2001)
Anthony Hecht (2000)
Barbara Guest (1999)
Stanley Kunitz (1998)
Josephine Jacobsen (1997)
Richard Wilbur (1996)
John Ashbery (1995)
A. R. Ammons (1994)
William Stafford (1993)

The Griffin Poetry Prize

Two literary awards offered by the Griffin Trust for excellence in English poetry, divided between a living Canadian poet/translator and a living poet/translator from anywhere in the world. The prizes are awarded annually for collections of poetry published in English during the preceding year.

Anne Simpson (2004)
Loop (McClelland & Stewart Ltd.)

August Kleinzahler (2004)
The Strange Hours Travelers Keep (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Margaret Avison (2003)
Concrete And Wild Carrot (Brick Books)

Paul Muldoon (2003)
Moy Sand And Gravel (Farrar Straus & Giroux)

Alice Notley (2002)
Disobedience (Penguin Putnam)

Christian Bök (2002)
Eunoia (Coach House Books)

Anne Carson (2001)
Men in the Off Hours (Alfred A. Knopf)

Heather McHugh and Nikolai Popov (2001)
Glottal Stop: 101 Poems by Paul Celan (Wesleyan/University Press of New England)

John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowships

Awarded on the basis of unusually distinguished achievement in the past and exceptional promise for future accomplishment.

Mary Jo Bang (2004)
Toi Derricotte (2004)
Stuart Dischell (2004)
Andrew Hudgins (2004)
Lawson Fusao Inada (2004)
Mary Karr (2004)
Kay Ryan (2004)
Grace Schulman (2004)
Vijay Seshadri (2004)
Diane Ackerman (2003)
April Bernard (2003)
Susan Hahn (2003)
David Hinton (2003)
David Kirby (2003)
Bill Knott (2003)
Phillis Levin (2003)
Marie Ponsot (2003)
Natasha Trethewey (2003)
David Wojahn (2003)
Kevin Young (2003)
Betty Adcock (2002)
Elizabeth Alexander (2002)
Peter Cole (2002)
Richard Jackson (2002)
Jane Mead (2002)
Mary Ruefle (2002)
Dean Young (2002)
Tom Andrews (2001)
Nick Flynn (2001)
Dorianne Laux (2001)
Marilyn Nelson (2001)
Wyatt Prunty (2001)
David Rivard (2001)
Charles Harper Webb (2001)
David Baker (2000)
Rigoberto González (2000)
Linda Gregerson (2000)
Brooks Haxton (2000)
Tony Hoagland (2000)
Eric Pankey (2000)
Robin Behn (1999)
David Bottoms (1999)
B. H. Fairchild (1999)
Jeffrey W. Harrison (1999)
Steve Orlen (1999)
Ira Sadoff (1999)
Susan Wheeler (1999)
Bei Dao (1998)
Anne Carson (1998)
Marie Howe (1998)
Dionisio D. Martinez (1998)
Campbell McGrath (1998)
Susan Wood (1998)
Baron Wormser (1998)
Rafael Campo (1997)
James Lasdun (1997)
Khaled Mattawa (1997)
Naomi Shihab Nye (1997)
Jacqueline Osherow (1997)
Carl Phillips (1997)
Peter Sacks (1997)
Arthur Sze (1997)
Lucie Brock-Broido (1996)
Mark Rudman (1996)
Agha Shahid Ali (1996)
David Ferry (1996)
Susan Howe (1996)
Robert Wrigley (1996)
Linda Bierds (1995)
Michael Collier (1995)
Derek Mahon (1995)
Lynne McMahon (1995)
Thylias Moss (1995)

Kate Tufts Discovery Award

Offered by the Claremont Graduate School for a work by an emerging poet whose work displays extraordinary promise.

Adrian Blevins (2004)

The Brass Girl Brouhaha (Ausable Press)

Joanie Mackowski (2003)

The Zoo (The University of Pittsburgh Press)

Cate Marvin (2002)

World's Tallest Disaster (Sarabande Books)

Jennifer Clarvoe (2001)

Invisible Tender (Fordham University Press)

Terrance A. Hayes (2000)

Muscular Music (Tia Chucha Press)

Barbara Ras (1999)

Bite Every Sorrow (Louisiana State University Press)

Charles Harper Webb (1998)

Reading the Water (Northeastern University Press)

Lucia Perillo (1997)

The Body Mutinies (Purdue University Press)

Barbara Hamby (1996)

Delirium (University of North Texas Press)

Doug Anderson (1995)

The Moon Reflected Fire (Alice James Books)

Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award

Offered by the Claremont Graduate School for a work by an emerging poet, one who is past the very beginning but who has not yet reached the acknowledged pinnacle of his or her career.

Henri Cole (2004)

Middle Earth (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Linda Gregerson (2003)

Waterborne (Houghton Mifflin)

Carl Phillips (2002)

The Tether (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Alan Shapiro (2001)

The Dead Alive and Busy (University of Chicago Press)

Robert Wrigley (2000)

Reign of Snakes (Penguin)

B. H. Fairchild (1999)

The Art of the Lathe (Alice James Books)

John Koethe (1998)

Falling Water (HarperCollins)

Campbell McGrath (1997)

Spring Comes to Chicago (Ecco Press)

Deborah Digges (1996)

Rough Music (Knopf)

Thomas Lux (1995)

Split Horizon (Houghton Mifflin)

Yusef Komunyakaa (1994)

Neon Vernacular (Wesleyan University Press)

Susan Mitchell (1993)

Rapture (HarperCollins)

Lannan Literary Awards

Offered by the Lannan Foundation for writers who have made a significant contribution to English-language literature and to emerging writers of distinctive literary merit who demonstrate potential.

Chris Abani (2003)
George Evans (2003)
Linda Gregg (2003)
John Berger (Lifetime Achievement Award for Poetry; 2002)
Alan Dugan (2002)
Peter Dale Scott (2002)
Evan Connell (Lifetime Achievement Award for Poetry; 2000)
Herbert Morris (2000)
Jay Wright (2000)
Adrienne Rich (Lifetime Achievement Award for Poetry; 1999)
Louise Glück (1999)
Dennis O'Driscoll (1999)
C. D. Wright (1999)
Frank Bidart (1998)
Jon Davis (1998)
Mary Oliver (1998)
Ken Smith (1997)
R. S. Thomas (Lifetime Achievement Award for Poetry; 1996)
Anne Carson (1996)
Lucille Clifton (1996)
Donald Justice (1996)
Hayden Carruth (1995)
Carol Ann Duffy (1995)
Li-Young Lee (1995)
Arthur Sze (1995)
Simon Armitage (1994)
Eavan Boland (1994)
Jack Gilbert (1994)
Linda Hogan (1994)
Richard Kenney (1994)

Los Angeles Times Book Prizes

Offered to honor literary excellence.

Anthony Hecht (2003)

Collected Later Poems (Alfred A. Knopf)

Cynthia Zarin (2002)

The Watercourse (Alfred A. Knopf)

Anne Carson (2001)

The Beauty of the Husband: A Fictional Essay in 29 Tangos (Alfred A. Knopf)

Gjertrud Schnackenberg (2000)

The Throne of Labdacus (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

C. K. Williams (1999)

Repair: Poems (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Charles Wright (1998)

Black Zodiac (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Alan Shapiro (1996)

Mixed Company (University of Chicago, 1995)

Robert Pinsky (1995)

The Inferno of Dante (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Carolyn Forché (1994)

The Angel of History (HarperCollins)

Mark Doty (1993)

My Alexandria (University of Illinois Press)

MacArthur Fellows Program

Offered by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation for writers of exceptional talent and promise.

Anne Carson (2000)
Lucia Perillo (2000)
Campbell McGrath (1999)
Linda Bierds (1998)
Edward Hirsch (1998)
Susan Stewart (1997)
Luis Alfaro (1997)
Richard Howard (1996)
Thylias Moss (1996)
Sandra Cisneros (1995)
Adrienne Rich (1994)
Jim Powell (1993)
Ann Lauterbach (1993)
Thom Gunn (1993)
Amy Clampitt (1992)
Irving Feldman (1992)
Alice Fulton (1991)
Eleonor Wilner (1991)

Morton Dauwen Zabel Award

Given in rotation to a U.S. poet, fiction writer, or critic whose work is "progressive, original, and experimental," by the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Ronald Sukenick (2002)
Paul Violi (2001)
Yusef Komunyakaa (1998)
Frank Bidart (1995)

National Book Awards

Offered by the National Book Foundation for the best book of poetry by a U.S. author during the year in which the award is given.

C. K. Williams (2003)

The Singing (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Ruth Stone (2002)

In the Next Galaxy (Copper Canyon Press)

Alan Dugan (2001)

Poems Seven: New and Complete Poetry (Seven Stories Press)

Lucille Clifton (2000)

Blessing the Boats: New and Selected Poems 1988-2000 (BOA Editions)

Ai (1999)

Vice: New & Selected Poems (W. W. Norton)

Gerald Stern (1998)

This Time: New and Selected Poems (W. W. Norton)

William Meredith (1997)

Effort at Speech: New and Selected Poems (Triquarterly Books/Northwestern University Press)

Hayden Carruth (1996)

Scrambled Eggs & Whiskey: Poems 1991-1995 (Copper Canyon Press)

Stanley Kunitz (1995)

Passing Through (W.W. Norton)

James Tate (1994)

Worshipful Company of Fletchers (The Ecco Press)

A. R. Ammons (1993)

Garbage (W.W. Norton)

Mary Oliver (1992)

New and Selected Poems (Beacon Press)

National Book Critics Circle Awards

Offered by the National Book Critics Circle for the best book of poetry by a U.S. author in the preceding year.

Susan Stewart (2003)

Columbarium (The University of Chicago Press)

Albert Goldbarth (2002)

Saving Lives: Poems (Ohio State University Press)

Judy Jordan (2001)

Carolina Ghost Woods (Louisiana State University Press)

Ruth Stone (2000)

Ordinary Words (Paris Press)

Marie Ponsot (1999)

The Bird Catcher (Alfred A. Knopf)

Charles Wright (1998)

Black Zodiac (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Robert Hass (1996)

Sun Under Wood (Ecco)

William Matthews (1995)

Time & Money (Houghton Mifflin)

Mark Rudman (1994)

Rider (Wesleyan/New England)

Mark Doty (1993)

My Alexandria (University of Illinois Press)

Hayden Carruth (1992)

Collected Shorter Poems (Copper Canyon Press)

Albert Goldbarth (1991)

Heaven and Earth (University of Georgia Press)

National Poetry Series Competition

Offered by the National Poetry Series through five participating publishers for a collection of poetry.

2003

Stephen Cramer

Shiva's Drum (University of Illinois Press)

Andrew Feld

Citizen (HarperCollins Publishers)

Raymond McDaniel

Entrance to Murder and After (Coffee House Press)

John Spaulding

The White Train: Poems from Photographs (Louisiana State University Press)

Mark Yakich

Unrelated Individuals Forming a Group Waiting to Cross (Penguin Books)

2002

Julie Kane

Rhythm & Booze (University of Illinois Press)

William Keckler

Sanskrit of the Body (Viking Penguin)

Eleni Sikelianos

Footnotes to the Lambs (Green Integer)

Gabriel Spera

The Standing Wave (HarperCollins)

Meredith Stricker

Tenderness Shore (Louisiana State University Press)

2000

Jean Donnelly

Anthem (Sun and Moon Press)

Susan Atefat Peckham

That Kind of Sleep (Coffee House Press)

Spencer Short

Tremolo (HarperCollins)

Rebecca Wolff

Manderley (University of Illinois Press)

Susan Wood

Asunder (Penguin Books)

1999

Tenaya Darlington

Madame Deluxe (Coffee House Press)

Eugene Gloria

Drivers at the Short-Time Motel (Penguin Books)

Corey Marks

Renunciation (University of Illinois Press)

Dionisio Martinez

Climbing Back (W.W. Norton)

Standard Schaefer

Nova (Sun and Moon Press)

1998

Rigoberto Gonzalez

So Often the Pitcher Goes to Water Until It Breaks (University of Illinois Press)

Harry Humes

Ghost Pain (Milkweed Editions)

Joan Murray

Looking for the Parade (W. W. Norton)

Ed Roberson

Atmosphere Conditions (Sun & Moon Press)

Lee Ann Roripaugh

Heart Mountain (Viking Penguin)

1997

Sandra Alcosser

Except By Nature (Graywolf Press)

Martine Bellen

Tales of Murasaki and Other Poems (Sun & Moon Press)

Robert Gibb

The Origins of Evening (W.W. Norton)

Lisa Lewis

Silent Treatment (Penguin Books)

Heather Ramsdell

Lost Wax (University of Illinois Press)

1996

Jeanne Marie Beaumont

Placebo Effects (W.W. Norton)

A. V. Christie

Nine Skies (University of Illinois Press)

Jeff Clark

The Little Door Slides Back (Sun & Moon Press)

Barbara Cully

The New Intimacy (Penguin)

Mary Leader

Red Signature (Graywolf Press)

1995

Heather Allen

Leaving a Shadow (Copper Canyon Press)

Marcus Cafagna

The Broken World (University of Illinois Press)

Daniel Hall

Strange Relation (Penguin Books)

Juliana Spahr

Response (Sun & Moon Press)

Karen Volkman

(W. W. Norton)

Nobel Prize in Literature

Offered by the Swedish Academy for the total literary output of a writer.

Wislawa Szymborska (1996)

View with a Grain of Sand (Harcourt Brace)

Seamus Heaney (1995)

The Spirit Level (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Derek Walcott (1992)

The Odyssey: A Staged Version (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Octavio Paz (1990)

The Double Flame (Harcourt Brace)

O. B. Hardison, Jr., Poetry Prize

Given by the Folger Shakespeare Library to a U.S. poet who has published at least one book within the last five years, has made important contributions as a teacher, and is committed to furthering the understanding of poetry.

Cornelius Eady (2003)
Ellen Bryant Voigt (2002)
David St. John (2001)
Rachel Hadas (2000)
Alan Shapiro (1999)
Heather McHugh (1998)
Jorie Graham (1997)
Frank Bidart

PEN Award for Poetry in Translation

Honoring a poetry translation published in the preceding year.

Peter Cole (2004)

J'Accuse by Aharon Shabtai (New Directions, 2003)

Khaled Mattawa (2003)

Without an Alphabet, Without a Face: Selected Poems of Saadi Youssef by Saadi Youssef (Graywolf Press, 2002)

Anne Twitty (2002)

Islandia by Maria Negroni (Station Hill, 2001)

Chana Bloch and Chana Kronfeld (2001)

Open Closed Open by Yehuda Amichai (Harcourt, 2000)

James Brasfield and Oleh Lysheha (2000)

The Selected Poems of Oleh Lysheha by Oleh Lysheha (Harvard Ukranian Research Institute, 2000)

Richard Zenith (1999)

Fernando Pessoa & Co.: Selected Poems by Fernando Pessoa (Grove/Atlantic, 1999)

Eamon Grennan (1998)

Selected Poems by Giacomo Leopardi (Princeton University Press, 1997)

Edward Snow (1997)

Uncollected Poems by Rainer Maria Rilke (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1996)

Guy Davenport (1996)

7 Greeks (New Directions, 1995)

PEN/Book-of-the-Month Club Translation Prize

Given to a book-length translation from any language into English published in the preceding year.

R. W. Flint (2003)

The Moon and the Bonfires by Cesare Pavese (New York Review Books, 2002)

Stanislaw Baranczak and Clare Cavanagh (1996)

Wislawa Szymborska's View With a Grain of Sand (Harcourt Brace, 1995)

Burton Watson (1995)

Selected Poems by Su Tung-p'o (Copper Canyon, 1994)

PEN/Voelcker Award for Poetry

Given biennially to an American poet whose distinguished and growing body of work to date represents a notable and accomplished presence in American literature.

Robert Pinsky (2004)
Frederick Seidel (2002)
Heather McHugh (2000)
C. K. Williams (1998)
Franz Wright (1996)
Martín Espada (1994)

Poets' Prize

Awarded annually for the best book of verse published by an American in the previous calendar year. The prize money is donated by a committee of American poets, who also serve as judges, and by the Nicholas Roerich Museum.

Philip Booth (2001)

Lifelines: Selected Poems 1950-1999 (Viking Penguin, 1999)

Wendell Berry (2000)

The Selected Poems of Wendell Berry (Counterpoint Press, 1998)

Marilyn Nelson (1999)

The Fields of Praise: New and Selected Poems (Louisiana State University Press, 1997)

Sydney Lea (1998)

To the Bone: New and Selected Poems (Illinois University Press, 1996)

Leon Stokesbury (1998)

Autumn Rhythm: New and Selected Poems (University of Arkansas Press, 1996)

Josephine Jacobsen (1997)

In the Crevice of Time (Johns Hopkins University, 1995)

Marilyn Hacker (1996)

Selected Poems 1965-1990 (Norton, 1994)

Jared Carter (1995)

After the Rain (Cleveland State University Poetry Center, 1993)

Pulitzer Prizes in Letters

Offered by Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism to honor distinguished work by American writers, preferably with U.S. themes.

Franz Wright 2004

Walking to Martha's Vineyard (Alfred A. Knopf)

Paul Muldoon (2003)

Moy Sand and Gravel (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Carl Dennis (2002)

Practical Gods (Penguin Books)

Stephen Dunn (2001)

Different Hours (W.W. Norton & Company)

C. K. Williams (2000)

Repair (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Mark Strand (1999)

Blizzard of One (Alfred A. Knopf)

Charles Wright (1998)

Black Zodiac (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Lisel Mueller (1997)

Alive Together: New and Selected Poems (Louisiana State University Press)

Jorie Graham (1996)

The Dream of the Unified Field (The Ecco Press)

Philip Levine (1995)

The Simple Truth (Knopf)

Yusef Komunyakaa (1994)

Neon Vernacular (Wesleyan University Press)

Louise Glück (1993)

The Wild Iris (The Ecco Press)

Rebekah Johnson Bobbitt National Prize for Poetry

Offered by the Library of Congress for the best book of poetry published by a living U.S. author during the preceding two years.

Alice Fulton (2002)

Felt (W.W. Norton)

David Ferry (2000)

Of No Country I Know: New and Selected Poems (University of Chicago Press)

Frank Bidart (1998)

Desire (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Kenneth Koch (1996)

One Train (Knopf)

A. R. Ammons (1994)

Garbage (W.W. Norton)

Louise Glück (1992)

Ararat (The Ecco Press)

Mark Strand (1992)

The Continuous Life (Knopf)

Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize

Offered by the Modern Poetry Association for a U.S. poet "whose accomplishments warrant extraordinary recognition."

Kay Ryan (2004)
Linda Pastan (2003)
Lisel Mueller (2002)
Yusef Komunyakaa (2001)
Carl Dennis (2000)
Maxine Kumin (1999)
W. S. Merwin (1998)
William Matthews (1997)
Gerald Stern (1996)
A. R. Ammons (1995)
Donald Hall (1994)
Charles Wright (1993)

Shelley Memorial Award

Since 1929, offered by the Poetry Society of America to a poet living in the United States who is chosen on the basis of "genius and need."

Yusef Komunyakaa (2004)
James McMichael (2003)
Angela Jackson (2002)
Marie Ponsot (2002)
Alice Notley (2001)
Michael Palmer (2001)
Jean Valentine (2000)
Tom Sleigh (1999)
Eleanor Ross Taylor (1998)
Frank Bidart (1997)
Robert Pinsky (1996)
Anne Waldman (1996)
Stanley Kunitz
Kenneth Koch (1994)
Josephine Jacobsen (1993)

Whiting Writers Awards

Given by the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation to encourage exceptionally promising emerging talent and to recognize and encourage proven authors at a critical stage in their careers. The recipients are chosen by a committee of writers, literary scholars and editors.

Major Jackson (2003)
Jeffrey Renard Allen (2002)
Elizabeth Arnold (2002)
David Gewanter (2002)
Joshua Weiner (2002)
Joel Brouwer (2001)
Jason Sommer (2001)
Albert Mobilio (2000)
James Thomas Stevens/Aronhiotas (2000)
Claude Wilkinson (2000)
Michael Haskell (1999)
Terrance Hayes (1999)
Martha Zweig (1999)
Nancy Eimers (1998)
Daniel Hall (1998)
James Kimbrell (1998)
Charles Harper Webb (1998)
Greg Williamson (1998)
Connie Deanovich (1997)
Forrest Gander (1997)
Jody Gladding (1997)
Mark Turpin (1997)
Brigit Pegeen Kelley (1996)
Elizabeth Spires (1996)
Patricia Storace (1996)
Mark Doty (1995)
Mary Swander (1995)

William Carlos Williams Award

Offered by the Poetry Society of America for the best book of poetry published by a small, non-profit, or university press.

Anthony Butts (2004)

Little Low Heaven (New Issues, 2003)

Gary Young (2003)

No Other Life (Creative Arts Book Company, 2002)

Li-Young Lee (2002)

Book of My Nights (BOA Editions, Ltd)

Ralph J. Mills, Jr. (2001)

Grasses Standing (Asphodel Press)

Kathleen Peirce (2000)

The Oval Hour (University Press of Iowa)

John Balaban (1998)

Edge of Summer (Copper Canyon Press)

David Ignatow (1997)

I Have a Name (Wesleyan University)

Josephine Jacobsen (1996)

In the Crevice of Time: New and Selected Poems (Johns Hopkins University Press)

Cyrus Cassells (1995)

Soul Make a Path Through Shouting (Copper Canyon Press)

David Ray (1994)

Wool Highways (Helicon Nine Editions)

Louise Glück (1993)

The Wild Iris (The Ecco Press)

Witter Bynner Fellowships

Administered by the Library of Congress, the fellowships are sponsored by the Witter Bynner Foundation for Poetry, an organization that provides grant support for poetry programs through nonprofit organizations. Fellows are chosen by the Poet Laureate, and are expected to participate in a poetry reading at the Library of Congress in October and to organize a poetry reading in their respective cities.

George Bilgere (2002)
Katia Kapovich (2002)
Tory Dent (2001)
Nick Flynn (2001)
Naomi Shihab Nye (2000)
Joshua Weiner (2000)
David Gewanter (1999)
Heather McHugh (1999)
Campbell McGrath (1999)
Carol Muske (1998)
Carl Phillips (1998)

Witter Bynner Poetry Prize

Established by the American Academy & Institute of Arts & Letters in 1980 to support the work of a young poet.

Susan Wheeler (2002)
Rachel Wetzsteon (2001)
Dana Levin (2000)
Brigit Pegeen Kelly (1999)
Elizabeth Spires (1998)
Mark Doty (1997)
Lucie Brock-Broido (1996)
Franz Wright (1995)

Yale Series of Younger Poets

Offered by Yale University Press to a poet under the age of forty for a first volume of poetry.

Richard Siken (2004)

Crush

Peter Streckfus(2003)

The Cuckoo

Loren Goodman (2002)

Famous Americans

Sean Singer (2001)

Discography

Maurice Manning (2000)

Lawrence Booth's Book of Visions

Davis McCombs (1999)

Ultima Thule

Craig Arnold (1998)

Shells

No prize awarded in 1997

Talvikki Ansel (1996)

My Shining Archipelago

Ellen Hinsey (1995)

Cities of Memory

Tony Crunk (1994)

Living in the Resurrection

Valerie Wohlfeld (1993)

Thinking the World Visible

Jody Gladding (1992)

Stone Crop