$100,000 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award goes to Marianne Boruch

Claremont Graduate University announced Monday that the winner of its 2013 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award is Marianne Boruch. Boruch will be awarded $100,000 for her collection “The Book of Hours,” published by Copper Canyon Press.

The prize, one of the largest American awards for poetry, is given to a mid-career poet. Boruch’s work includes two collections of poetry: “Grace, Fallen From” (Wesleyan, 2008) and “Poems: New and Selected” (Oberlin, 2004). She is also the author of two books of essays about poetry -- “In the Blue Pharmacy” (Trinity, 2005) and “Poetry’s Old Air” (Michigan, 1993) -- and the memoir “The Glimpse Traveler” (Indiana, 2011). She teaches creative writing at Purdue University and in the Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College.

Claremont also announced the winner of its $10,000 Kate Tufts Discovery Award for a first poetry book: Heidy Steidlmayer for “Fowling Piece,” published by TriQuarterly.

“We are delighted to honor these poets and celebrate their achievements,” said Wendy Martin, director of the Tufts Poetry Awards program and vice provost at Claremont Graduate University, in a release. “These awards will help them gain wider recognition and will sustain their continuing commitment to writing outstanding poetry.”

This marks the 21st year of the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award, created by Kate Tufts in memory of her husband, who loved poetry but never studied it. Previous winners include Yusef Komunyakaa, Chase Twichell and D.A. Powell.

Boruch’s other accolades include Pushcart Prizes, a Fulbright/visiting professorship at the University of Edinburgh, fellowships from the NEA and the Guggenheim Foundation, and residencies from the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Center and Isle Royale National Park.

The Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award and Kate Tufts Discovery Award will be presented at a ceremony in Claremont on April 18.

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