This week on My Poetic Side we have articles about a Blue Plaque for a poet, the Jackson poetry Prize and The American Academy of Arts and Sciences election of the first ever South Korean member.
Blue Plaque for Gerard Manley Hopkins
A blue plaque in commemoration of famous priest and poet Gerard Manley Hopkinsis to be unveiled in Barmouth at Aber Huse. It will celebrate the ties between the poet and the Welsh town.
Hopkins grew up in London but when he was studying to be a Catholic priest in North Wales near St Asaph (Llanelwy) he fell in love with Wales.
He quickly picked up the language and went on to write poems that were based on cynghanedd (harmony), the classical form of Welsh-language poetry. His work is known all over the world and there are a number of books that analyse his poetry as well. His name often appears on lists of some of the most important poets that Britain has ever produced.
Jackson Poetry Prize Awarded to Cyrus Cassells
The poet, Cyrus Cassells, who has long been admired for his work which covers topics from memories of survivors of the Holocaust to school integration has been awarded the $100,000 prize which is given for “exceptional talent”.
The announcement was made on Monday by Poets & Writers. The prize was established in 2007 and has previously been awarded to Carl Phillips, Sonia Sanchez, and Joy Harjo to name just a few.
Cassells is a former poet laureate for Texas and has published a total of 11 books during his career.
American Academy of Arts and Sciences Elects South Korean Poet Kim Hye-soon
The 69-year-old South Korean poet Kim Hye-soon is the first writer from Korea to have been elected to the literature section of the academy. They will now join a number of American writers who have been selected for this year including, fellow poet Kwame Dawes.
This year, there are 8 new members who will be joining the Literature section of the Humanities and Arts division of the academy as part of the cohort of 248 members for the current year.
Kim Hye-soon is the first Koran writer to be elected although there have previously been 2 Korean Americans inducted as members. Lee Chang-rae, a novelist, and Choi Don-mee, a poet, were given the honour in 2021 and 2023 respectively.
Kim, who was born in 1955 debuted as a poet in 1979. Her work is widely celebrated in both Korea and across the globe. She was the first Asian woman to be awarded the Griffin Poetry Prize, which she won in 2016 for “The Autobiography of Death”. She was also the first Korean writer to win the National Book Critics Circle Award which she received in 2024.
The AAAS has been honouring excellence and putting together leaders in their fields since 1780 in order to
Whilst most of the 248 members are American, there are a number of international members every year. This year there are 23.
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