National Book Award for Poetry

National Book Award for Poetry
Awarded forOutstanding poetry work by U.S. citizens.
LocationNew York City
Reward(s)$10,000 USD (winner)
$1,000 USD (finalists)
First awarded1967–1983, 1991
WebsiteNational Book Foundation

The National Book Award for Poetry is one of five annual National Book Awards, which are given by the National Book Foundation to recognize outstanding literary work by US citizens. They are awards "by writers to writers".[1] The judging panel is made up of five "writers who are known to be doing great work in their genre or field".[2]

The category for Poetry was established in 1950 and has been awarded annually apart from the period 1984 to 1990.[3]

The Poetry award and many others were eliminated from the program when it was revamped in 1984. It was restored in 1991, for current-year publications, with a standard five finalists announced a few weeks prior to the main event.

The award recognizes one book written by a US citizen and published in the US from December 1 of the previous year to November 30 in the award year. The National Book Foundation accepts nominations from publishers until June 15, requires mailing nominated books to the panelists by August 1, and announces five finalists in October. The winner is announced on the day of the final ceremony in November. The award is $10,000 and a bronze sculpture; other finalists receive $1000, a medal, and a citation written by the panel.[4]

There were 148 nominations for the 2010 award.[5] This had risen to 299 submissions by 2024.[6]

  1. ^ "History of the National Book Awards" Archived 2018-10-03 at the Wayback Machine. National Book Foundation (NBF): About Us. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
  2. ^ "How the National Book Awards Work" Archived 2011-06-09 at the Wayback Machine. NBF: Awards. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
  3. ^ "National Book Award Winners: 1950 – 2009" Archived 2012-05-28 at the Wayback Machine. NBF: Awards. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
  4. ^ "National Book Award Selection Process" Archived 2008-06-13 at the Wayback Machine. NBF: Awards. Retrieved 2011-11-17.
  5. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions" Archived 2017-11-19 at the Wayback Machine. NBF: About Us. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
  6. ^ Anderson, Porter (September 28, 2024). "US National Book Award 2024 Longlists: Poetry". Publishing Perspectives. Retrieved October 7, 2024.