Please join us for the Golden Rose Reading and Reception this Sunday, August 13th, 3 pm, Longfellow House – Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site Poet Marilyn Nelson is this year’s recipient of the Golden Rose Award in recognition of her wide-ranging contributions to American poetry and her inspirational teaching. The public is invited to join the celebration of Marilyn Nelson and to hear her read her work.
Marilyn Nelson is the author or translator of over twenty-four books, including collections for children and young adults. Her work uses storytelling and lyricism to probe the complexity of history, especially the history of racism and slavery in America, and to give voice to praise, wonder, grief, and contemplation. Along with the Golden Rose, Nelson’s honors include the PEN Book Award, the Lenore Marshall Award, the Poetry Society of America’s Frost Medal and others. Nelson is a professor emerita of English at the University of Connecticut and the founder of Soul Mountain Retreat, a writing retreat to support the work of African-American poets. In 2009 she was a faculty member of U-Mass Boston’s Writer’s Workshop at the Joiner Center. Her website: http://marilyn-nelson.com
The Golden Rose, one of America’s oldest literary prizes, is an annual award, inaugurated in 1919, to honor a poet whose work and encouragement of other writers has made a significant mark on American poetry. Winners have included Adrienne Rich, Seamus Heaney, Derek Walcott, Naomi Shihab Nye, and Fanny Howe who was honored in 2016.