Allen Ginsberg crowned "Majelis King" in Prague on May Day.
Jason Shinder, an American poet, expands a New York City Y.M.C.A. writing education program nationwide, thereby founding the Y.M.C.A. National Writer’s Voice program, one of the country’s largest networks of literary-arts centers, with 24 locations by 2008. Writers who teach in the program include poets Adrienne Rich and Galway Kinnell, novelists Michael Cunningham and E. L. Doctorow, and playwright Wendy Wasserstein.
Listed by nation where the work was first published and again by the poet's native land, if different; substantially revised works listed separately:
Jennifer Maiden:
Bastille Day, NLA
Selected Poems of Jennifer Maiden, Penguin
The Winter Baby, Angus & Robertson
Les Murray, Dog Fox Field Sydney: Angus & Robertson, 1990; Carcanet, 1991 and New York, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1993
Chris Wallace-Crabbe:
For Crying Out Loud, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Poetry and Belief (scholarship), Hobart: University of Tasmania
Dionne Brand, No Language is Neutral
George Elliott Clarke, Whylah Falls, Vancouver: Polestar, ISBN 0-919591-57-4 (revised edition, 2000 ISBN 1-896095-50-X)
A. E. Davidson, Studies on Canadian Literature (scholarship), Canada
Louis Dudek, Continuation II. Montreal: Véhicule.
George Johnston, Endeared by Dark: The Collected Poems
A.M. Klein, Complete Poems.Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
A.M. Klein, Doctor Dwarf and Other Poems for Children. Kingston, ON: Quarry Press.
Archibald Lampman, Selected Poetry of Archibald Lampman, Michael Gnarowski ed. (Ottawa: Tecumseh). ISBN 978-0-919662-15-5
James Reaney, Performance Poems.
Michael Redhill, Impromptu Feats of Balance, Don Mills, Ontario: Wolsak & Wynn
Ajmer Rode, Poems at my Doorstep, by a Punjabi poet living and published in Canada and writing in English; Vancouver: Caitlin Press, ISBN 0-920576-31-1
Ricardo Sternberg, Invention of Honey, Montreal: Signal Editions
Phyllis Webb, Hanging Fire
Dom Moraes, Serendip ( Poetry in English ) .
Eunice de Souza, Ways of Belonging: Selected Poems ( Poetry in English ), Edinburgh: Polygon, United Kingdom
Sudeep Sen, The Lunar Visitations ( Poetry in English ), Indian poet writing in English, published in the United States and India; White Swan Books, New York, 1990; ISBN 1-878122-00-2, (reprinted in 1991, New Delhi: Rupa)
Ireland
Eavan Boland, Outside History, including "The Latin Lesson" and "Midnight Flowers", Carcanet Press
Pat Boran:
History and Promise (IUP)
The Unwound Clock (Dedalus)
Ciarán Carson, Belfast Confetti, Bloodaxe, Wake Forest University Press, Irish poet published in the United Kingdom
Paul Durcan, Daddy, Daddy
Padraic Fallon, Collected Poems, introduction by Seamus Heaney, Oldcastle: The Gallery Press, ISBN 978-1-85235-052-9 published posthumously
Seamus Heaney:
The Tree Clock, Linen Hall Library
New Selected Poems 1966-1987, Faber & Faber
The Redress of Poetry, criticism
Michael D. Higgins, The Betrayal
Paul Muldoon, Madoc, including "Cauliflowers", Faber and Faber, Irish poet published in the United Kingdom
Eilean Ni Chuilleanain, The Magdalene Sermon, including "The Informant", Oldcastle: The Gallery Press
New Zealand
Allen Curnow, Selected Poems 1940–1989
Bill Manhire, The Old Man's Example
Frank McKay, Life of James K. Baxter, Auckland: Oxford University Press; called the "standard biography" of New Zealand's "probably New Zealand's best-known poet"
Cilla McQueen, Berlin Diary, winner of the 1991 New Zealand Book Award for Poetry
Dannie Abse, Remembrance of Crimes Past
Eavan Boland, Outside History
Ciarán Carson: Belfast Confetti, Bloodaxe, Wake Forest University Press, Irish poet published in the United Kingdom
Cary Archard, editor, Poetry Wales: 25 Years, Seren, an anthology
Donald Davie, Collected Poems
Paul Durcan, Daddy, Daddy
Carol Ann Duffy, The Other Country, Anvil Press Poetry (poetry)
Padraic Fallon, Collected Poems, introduction by Seamus Heaney, published posthumously
Elaine Feinstein, City Music, Hutchinson
Tony Harrison
Losing Touch
The Trackers of Oxyrhynchus
Seamus Heaney:
The Tree Clock, Linen Hall Library
New Selected Poems 1966-1987, Faber & Faber
The Redress of Poetry, criticism
John Heath-Stubbs:
The Game of Love and Death
Selected Poems
John Hegley, Glad to Wear Glasses (glad to have ears)
Adrian Henri, Box, and Other Poems
Alan Jenkins, Greenheart
Derek Mahon, The Chinese Restaurant in Portrush: Selected Poems. Gallery Press
Glyn Maxwell, Tale of the Mayor's Son
Edwin Morgan, Collected Poems
Brian Patten, Collected Poems
Ruth Pitter, Collected Poems, introduction by Elizabeth Jennings
Peter Redgrove, Dressed as for a Tarot Pack
Peter Scupham, Watching the Perseids
R.S. Thomas, Counterpoint
Hugo Williams, Self-Portrait with a Slide
Elizabeth Alexander, The Venus Hottentot
Maya Angelou, I Shall Not be Moved
Frank Bidart, In the Western Night: Collected Poems 1965–90 (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
Philip Booth, Selves, Viking Penguin
George F. Butterick and Richard Blevins, editors, Charles Olson and Robert Creeley: The Complete Correspondence, ninth and last volume published this year (first volume published in 1980), Santa Barbara, California, biography and criticism
Maxine Chernoff, Leap Year Day: New & Selected Poems (Another Chicago Press)
Alice Fulton, Powers of Congress
David Graham, Second Wind, Texas Tech University Press
David Lehman, Operation Memory, Princeton University Press
Thomas Lux, The Drowned River, Houghton Mifflin
Jean Marzollo, Pretend You're a Cat
Mary Oliver, House of Light
Peter Oresick, Definitions (West End Press) and Working Classics (University of Illinois Press)
Mark Strand, The Continuous Life, Canadian native living in and published in the United States
Derek Walcott, Omeros
Rosmarie Waldrop, Peculiar Motions (Kelsey St. Press)
Reed Whittemore, The Past, the Future, the Present: Poems Selected and New
Michael James Hutt, editor and translator, Himalayan Voices: An Introduction to Modern Nepali Literature, University of California Press
Peter H. Lee, editor, Modern Korean Literature, including poetry, University of Hawai'i Press
Edward Morin, editor, The Red Azalea: Chinese Poetry since the Cultural Revolution, University of Hawai'i Press
These 75 poets were included in The Best American Poetry 1990, edited by David Lehman with Jorie Graham, guest editor:
Ramabai Espinet, Creation Fire: A CAFRA Anthology of Caribbean Women's Poetry
Derek Walcott, Omeros, St. Lucia poet living in the United States
Listed by nation where the work was first published and again by the poet's native land, if different; substantially revised works listed separately:
Denise Desautels, Leçons de Venise ("Venice Lessons"), about three sculptures by Michel Goulet, Saint-Lambert: Le Noroît
Suzanne Jacob, Filandere Cantabile, Paris: Marval
Abdellatif Laabi, Moroccan author writing in and published in France:
Tous les déchirements. Messidor, Paris (épuisé)
translator, La Poésie palestinienne contemporaine, an anthology translated from the original Arabic; Paris: Éditions Messidor
translator, L'Espace du Noûn, translated in collaboration with Leïla Khatib from the original Arabic of Hassan Hamdane; Paris: Éditions Messidor
Attila Balogh, Versek ("Poems")
György Petri, Valami ismeretlen
Gábor Tompa, Készenlét ("Alertness"), Budapest
Listed in alphabetical order by first name:
Joy Goswami, Kabita-Songroho, Vol. 1, Kolkata: Ananda Publishers, ISBN 81-7066-205-2 (six reprints by 2001); Bengladeshi-language
K. Satchidanandan, Kayattam, ("The Ascent"); Malayalam-language
Vaidehi, pen name of Janaki Srinivasa Murthy, Bindu Bindige, Sagara: Akshara Prakashana; Kannada-language
Varavara Rao (better known as "VV"), Muktakantam or Muktakantham ("Free Throat"), Vijayawada: Samudram Prachuranalu; Telugu-language
Yash Sharma, Jo Tere Man Chitt Laggi Ja ("Whatever Touches Your Heart and Souls"), winner of the Sahitya Academy Award; Dogri-language
Poland
Stanisław Barańczak:
159 wiersze 1968-88 ("159 Poems"), Kraków: Znak
Tablica z Macondo. Osiemnascie prob wytlumaczenia, po co i dlaczego sie pisze ("A License Plate from Macondo: Eighteen Attempts at Explaining Why One Writes"), criticism; London: Aneks
Zbigniew Herbert, Elegia na odejście ("Elegy for the Departure"), Paris: Instytut Literacki
Ewa Lipska, Strefa ograniczonego postoju, ("Limited Standing Zone"); Warsaw: Czytelnik
Eugeniusz Tkaczyszyn-Dycki, Nenia i inne wiersze
Jan Twardowski,Tak ludzka, Poznań: Księgarnia św. Wojciech
Adam Zagajewski:
Płótno, Paris: Zeszyty Literackie
Płótno, Paris: Zeszyty Literackie
Matilde Camus, El color de mi cristal ("The colour of my glasses")
Christoph Buchwald, general editor, and Karl Mickel, guest editor, Jahrbuch der Lyrik 1990/91 ("Poetry Yearbook 1990/91"), publisher: Luchterhand; anthology; Germany
Mircea Cărtărescu, The Levant (Levantul), Romania
Lo Fu (poet) (Luo Fu), Chinese (Taiwan):
Nirvana of Angels
House of Midnight
Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill, Pharaoh's Daughter, including "Fear Suaithinseach", "An Bhabog Bhriste", "An Bhean Mhidhilis", and "Ceist na Teangan", Oldcastle: The Gallery Press, Gaelic-language, Ireland
Maria Luisa Spaziani, Giovanna d'Arco, Italy
C. J. Dennis Prize for Poetry: Robert Adamson, The Clean Dark
Kenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry: Robert Adamson, The Clean Dark
Mary Gilmore Prize: Kristopher Rassemussen - In the Name of the Father
Gerald Lampert Award
Archibald Lampman Award
See 1990 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
Pat Lowther Award
Prix Alain-Grandbois
Cholmondeley Award: Kingsley Amis, Elaine Feinstein, Michael O'Neill
Eric Gregory Award: Nicholas Drake, Maggie Hannan, William Park, Jonathan Davidson, Lavinia Greenlaw, Don Paterson, John Wells
Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry: Sorley Maclean
Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize: Debra Allbery, Walking Distance
Aiken Taylor Award for Modern American Poetry: W. S. Merwin
AML Award for poetry to Loretta Randall Sharp for "Doing It"
Bernard F. Connors Prize for Poetry: Christopher Logue, "Kings"
Bobbitt National Prize for Poetry: James Merrill, The Inner Room
Frost Medal: Denise Levertov / James Laughlin
National Book Award for Poetry: No prize given
Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress: Mark Strand
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry: Charles Simic: The World Doesn't End
Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize: Hayden Carruth
Whiting Awards: Emily Hiestand, Dennis Nurkse
Fellowship of the Academy of American Poets: William Meredith
Birth years link to the corresponding "[year] in poetry" article:
March 13 – Teiko Tomita (born 1894), Japanese-born American poet who wrote in Japanese
May 14 – Mary Oppen, 82 (born 1908), American poet, activist, artist, photographer and writer, wife of George Oppen
October 12 – Nagai Tatsuo 永井龍男, used the pen-name of "Tomonkyo" for his poetry (born 1904), Japanese, Showa period novelist, short-story writer, haiku poet, editor and journalist
November 7 – Lawrence Durrell, 78 (born 1912), English novelist, poet, dramatist and travel writer
November 11 – Yiannis Ritsos (born 1909), Greek
Also:
Frances Chung (born 1950), Chinese American
Nikos Karouzos (born 1926), Greek
John Ormond (born 1923), Welsh poet and journalist
