June 2 – Dead Poets Society, a film incorporating excerpts from many traditional poets, ending with the title and opening line of Walt Whitman's lament on the death of Abraham Lincoln, "O Captain! My Captain!", is released in the United StatesNovember 10 – My Left Foot, a film about Christy Brown, the Irish poet, and based on his autobiography, is releasedListed by nation where the work was first published and again by the poet's native land, if different; substantially revised works listed separately:
Robert Adamson The Clean DarkLes Murray, The Idyll WheelPhilip Salom: Barbecue of the Primitives. (University of Queensland) ISBN 978-0-7022-2221-4Chris Wallace-Crabbe (Sangue e l'acqua, translated and edited into Italian by Giovann Distefano, Abano Terme: Piovan EditoreMargaret Avison, No Time (winner of the Governor General's Award for English language poetry in 1990C. Bayard, The New Poetics in Canada and Quebec (scholarship)Roo Borson, Intent, or, The Weight of the World, ISBN 0-7710-1588-7 American-CanadianTim Lilburn, Tourist To Ecstasy, a finalist for the Governor General’s Award, CanadaMichael Ondaatje, The Cinnamon Peeler: Selected Poems, Canadian poet published in the United Kingdom; London: Pan; New York: Knopf, 1991Michael Ondaatje and Linda Spalding, editors, The Brick Anthology, illustrated by David Bolduc, Toronto: Coach House PressNissim Ezekiel, Collected Poems ( Poetry in English ), Delhi, Oxford University PressJayanta Mahapatra, Temple ( Poetry in English ), Sydney: Dangaroo PressImtiaz Dharker, Purdah ( Poetry in English ),Oxford University Press, DelhiIreland
Sebastian Barry, Fanny Hawke Goes to the Mainland ForeverDermot Bolger, Leinster Street GhostsEavan Boland, Selected Poems, including "Listen. This is the Noise of Myth" and "Fond Memory", Carcanet PressCiaran Carson, Belfast Confetti, including "The Mouth" and "Hamlet", Oldcastle: The Gallery Press, ISBN 978-1-85235-042-0Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin: The Magdalene Sermon, shortlisted for the Irish Times/Aer Lingus Award, Oldcastle: The Gallery Press, IrelandDenis Devlin, Collected Poems, including "Ank'hor Vat", "Little Elegy", "Memoirs of a Turcoman Diplomat: Oteli Asia Palas, Inc.", (see also Collected Poems 1964), Dedalus PressThomas McCarthy, Seven Winters in Paris, Anvil Press, London, IrelandJohn Montague, New Selected Poems, including "Like Dolmens Round My Childhood, the Old People", "The Trout", "A Chosen Light", The Same Gesture", "Last Journey", "Dowager" and "Herbert Street Revisited", Oldcastle: The Gallery PressMatthew Sweeney, Blue Shoes, including "to the Building Trade", and "Tube Ride to Martha's"Dannie Abse, White Coat, Purple CoatFleur Adcock (New Zealand poet who moved to England in 1963), translator, Orient Express: Poems. Grete Tartler, Oxford and New York: Oxford University PressSimon Armitage, Zoom!Dermot Bolger, Leinster Street Ghosts, Irish poet published in the United KingdomGillian Clarke, Letting in the RumourDonald Davie, To Scorch or FreezeGavin Ewart, Penultimate PoemsJames Fenton, Manila Envelope, self-published book of poemsRoy Fuller, Available for DreamsAlasdair Gray, Old NegativesGerald Hammond, Fleeting Things: English Poets and Poems, 1616-1660, scholarshipThe Blasphemers' Banquet by Tony HarrisonSelima Hill, The Accumulation of Small Acts of KindnessTed Hughes, WolfwatchingPeter Levi, Shadow and BoneGeorge MacBeth, Collected Poems 1958–1982E. A. Markham, editor, Hinterland: Caribbean Poetry from the West Indies and BritainGrace Nichols:Editor, Poetry Jump-Up, illustrated by Michael Lewis, Penguin (Harmondsworth, England); had been published as Black Poetry in 1988 by Blackie (London, England)Lazy Thoughts of a Lazy Woman, and Other Poems, Virago Press (London, England); published in 1990 by Random House (New York)Sean O'Brien, Boundary Beach (Ulsterman Publications)Fiona Pitt-Kethley, The Perfect ManPeter Porter, Possible WorldsPauline Prior-Pitt, Waiting WomenJ. H. Prynne, Word OrderPeter Reading, Perduta GenteVernon Scannell, Soldiering OnIain Crichton Smith, 'The Village, and Other PoemsCharles Tomlinson, AnnunciationsHugo Williams, Selected Poems, Oxford University PressJoseph Payne Brennan, Look Back On Laurel Hills (Jwindz Publishing/Dwayne H. Olsen)Raymond Carver, A New Path To The WaterfallHenri Cole, The Zoo Wheel of KnowledgeEd Dorn, Abhorrences, Black Sparrow PressRita Dove, Grace NotesW. S. Merwin and Soiku Shigematsu, translators, Sun at Midnight, poems by Musō SosekiMolly Peacock, Take HeartCharles Reznikoff, Poems 1918-1975: The Complete Poems of Charles Reznikoff, edited by Seamus Cooney (Black Sparrow Press)Michael Ryan, God Hunger, Viking PenguinMary Jo Salter, Unfinished Painting, KnopfN. Baym, et all, editors, The Norton Anthology of American Literature, two volumes, third editionEugene England and Dennis Clark, editors, Harvest: Contemporary Mormon Poems, 328 pages. Signature Books, ISBN 978-0-941214-80-3.M. Honey, editors, Shadowed Dreams: Women's Poetry of the Harlem RenaissanceM. Harris and K. Aguero, editors, An Ear to the GroundPoems by these 75 poets were included in The Best American Poetry 1989, edited by David Lehman, with Donald Hall, guest editor:
Criticism, scholarship and biography in the United States
Frederick Feirstein, editor, Expansive Poetry, various essays on the New Formalism and the related movement New Narrative, under the umbrella term "Expansive Poetry"Michele Leggott, Reading Zukofsky's 80 Flowers, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, (New Zealand writer; book published in the United States)A. Shucard, Modern American Poetry 1865-1950M. Davidson, The San Francisco RenaissanceW. Kalaidjian, Languages of Liberation: The Social Text in Contemporary American PoetryNorman Simms, Who's Writing and Why in the South Pacific, scholarship, New ZealandListed by nation where the work was first published and again by the poet's native land, if different; substantially revised works listed separately:
Nizar Qabbani, Syrian;A Match in My HandPetty Paper NationsNo Victor Other Than LoveInger Christensen, Denmark:Digt om døden ("Poem on Death")Lys og Græs ("Light and Grass")Klaus Høeck, Heptameron, publisher: Gyldendal; DenmarkClaude Esteban, Elégie de la mort violente, Flammarion; FranceAbdellatif Laabi, translator, Plus rares sont les roses, translated from the original Arabic of Mahmoud Darwich into French; Paris: Éditions de MinuitJean Royer, Introduction à la poésie québécoise: Les poètes et les œuvres des origines à nos jours, Montréal: BQ; CanadaGyörgy Petri, Ami kimaradtGyörgy Petri, Valahol megvanListed in alphabetical order by first name:
Anamika, Samay Ke Shahar Mein, Delhi: Parag Publications; Hindi-languageDileep Jhaveri, Pandukavyo ane Itar, Gujarati-language [2]Gagan Gill, Ek Din Lautegi Laraki, New Delhi: Rajkamal Prakashan, New Delhi, 1989, Bharatiya Jnanpith; Hindi-languageNirendranath Chakravarti, Jongole Ek Unmadini, Kolkata: Ananda Publishers; Bengali-languagePoland
Juliusz Erazm Bolek, Prywatne zagrożenieTymoteusz Karpowicz, Rozwiązywanie przestrzeni. Poemat polifoniczny ("Dissolving Space – A Polyphonic Poem")Wisława Szymborska: Poezje: Poems, bilingual Polish-English editionMatilde Camus:Santander en mi sentir ("Santander in my heart")Sin alcanzar la luz ("Without reaching the Light")Christoph Buchwald, general editor, and Rolf Haufs, guest editor, Luchterhand Jahrbuch der Lyrik 1989/90 ("Poetry Yearbook 1989/90"), publisher: Luchterhand Literaturverlag; anthology; West GermanyAlexander Mezhirov, Russia, Soviet Union:Бормотуха ("Bormotuha")Стихотворения ("Poems")Vladimir Vysotsky, Poėzii͡a i proza ("Poems and prose"), Russia songwriter and poet, Soviet UnionYu Jian, Shi liushi shou ChinaC. J. Dennis Prize for Poetry: Gwen Harwood, Bone ScanKenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry: John Tranter, Under BerlinMary Gilmore Prize: Alex Skovron, The Re-arrangementGerald Lampert AwardArchibald Lampman AwardSee 1989 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.Pat Lowther AwardPrix Alain-GrandboisNew Zealand
Jenny Bornholdt, Moving HouseLauris Edmond, Hot October, autobiographyKendrick Smithyman, Selected Poems, edited by Peter Simpson, Auckland: Auckland University Press, New ZealandCholmondeley Award: Peter Didsbury, Douglas Dunn, E.J. ScovellEric Gregory Award: Gerard Woodward, David Morley, Katrina Porteous, Paul HenryQueen's Gold Medal for Poetry: Allen CurnowAgnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize: Nancy Vieira Couto, The Face in the WaterAiken Taylor Award for Modern American Poetry: Anthony HechtAML Award for poetry Susan Elizabeth Howe for "Things in the Night Sky"Bernard F. Connors Prize for Poetry: Jorie Graham, "Spring"Frost Medal: Gwendolyn BrooksLannan Literary Award for Poetry: Cid Corman, George Evans and Peter LevittPulitzer Prize for Poetry: Richard Wilbur: New and Collected PoemsRuth Lilly Poetry Prize: Mona Van DuynWhiting Awards: Russell Edson, Mary Karr, C.D. WrightWilliam Carlos Williams Award: Diane Wakoski, Emerald Ice: Selected Poems 1962-1987Fellowship of the Academy of American Poets: Richard HowardJune 21 – Jackie Hill-Perry, born Jackie Hill, American poet and hip hop artistBirth years link to the corresponding "[year] in poetry" article:
January 4 – Srikrishna Alanahalli, 41 (born 1947), Indian Kannada-language novelist and poetJanuary 13 – Sterling Allen Brown, 87 (born 1901), African-American poet, teacher and writer on folklore and of literary criticismJanuary 22 – M. Govindan, 69 (born 1919), Indian, Malayalam-language poetFebruary 28 – Richard Armour, 82, American poet and writer, of Parkinson's diseaseMay 14 – Bhupi Sherchan, 53 (born 1935) Nepali poetJune 19 – Betti Alver, 82 (born 1906), Estonian poetAugust 25 – Hans Børli, 70, Norwegian poet, novelist, and writerSeptember 15 – Robert Penn Warren (born 1905), poet and writer, former U.S. Poet Laureate, of cancerOctober 12 – N. V. Krishna Warrier, 78 (born 1911), Indian, Malayalam-language poet, critic and scholar, introduced new types of long narrative poems and satires, editor of weekly Mathrubhumi, director of Kerala Bhasa InstituteOctober 24 – Doris Huestis Speirs (born 1894), Canadian painter, ornithologist and poetDecember 4 – May Swenson, American poet and playwrightDecember 22 – Samuel Beckett, Irish poet, playwright and novelist, winner of the Nobel Prize in 1969 
