Congratulations to Etel Adnan & Sarah Riggs! Time is shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize.
From the announcement: “Judges Paula Meehan (Ireland), Kei Miller (Jamaica/UK), and Hoa Nguyen (Canada) each read 572 books of poetry, from 14 countries, including 37 translations. The two winners, on Tuesday, May 19, will each be awarded $65,000. The other finalists – 3 International, and 2 Canadian, will be awarded $10,000.”
From the Judges’ Citation: “‘I say that I’m not afraid/of dying because I haven’t/ yet had the experience/ of death’ writes Etel Adnan in the opening poem to Time. What is astonishing here is how she manages to give weariness its own relentless energy. We are pulled quickly through this collection – each poem, only a breath, a small measure of the time that Adnan is counting. Every breath is considered, measured, observant – perceiving even ‘a crack in the/ texture of the day.’ If Adnan is correct and ‘writing comes from a dialogue/ with time’ then this is a conversation the world should be leaning into, listening to a writer who has earned every right to be listened to.”
Click here to see the full shortlist!