Both tender and arresting in her poetry, lewis is also an astute cultural critic, alert to the. Lewis has taught at wheaton college, hunter college, hampshire college and the nyu lowresidency mfa in paris. Voyage of the sable venus by robin coste lewis the 66th national book awards. The awards were founded in 1950 by the american book publishers council, american booksellers association, and book manufacturers institute. At the ceremony, robin coste lewis was awarded the national book award for poetry. More about this book poetry winner national book awards 2015. The national book award winners list penguin random house. The national book awards released its list of finalists wednesday morning, and coates book which explores issues of race and culture in the form of a heartfelt letter to his son. National book awards handed out in new york city the winners announced wednesday night included adam johnson in fiction, tanehisi coates in nonfiction, robin coste lewis in poetry and neal. National book awards, annual awards given to books of the highest quality written by americans and published by american publishers. The second time that i encountered voyage of the sable venus was the day after robin coste lewis won the national book award. Robin coste lewiss wonderful volume voyage of the sable venus 2015 won the national book award for poetry. Robin coste lewis is the author of voyage of the sable venus alfred a.
Lewis earned her mfa from nyus creative writing program where she was a goldwater fellow in poetry. The national book awards 2015 awards winners of the 2015 national book award in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and young peoples literature were announced at the 66th national book awards benefit dinner and ceremony at cipriani wall. In 2015, her debut poetry collection, voyage of the sable venus knopf won the national book award in poetrythe first time a poetry debut by an africanamerican had ever won the prize in the national book foundations history, and the first time any debut had won the award since 1974. Janalynn bliss, creative writing graduate coordinator university of southern california. Knopf, 2015, winner of the national book award in poetry. National book awards finalists will be announced on october 14th, and winners will be announced at a ceremony in new york on. Voyage of the sable venus by robin coste lewis lambda.
The national book award has been one of the most celebrated prizes since 1950. Robin coste lewis is an author with two videos in the cspan video library. Lewiss debut poetry collection, voyage of the sable venus and other poems knopf, 2015, won the 2015 national book award in poetry. The poetry prize went to voyage of the sable venus by robin coste lewis. Lewis received the award for her debut book, voyage of the sable venus and other poems alfred knopf, 2015. Congratulations to adam johnson fiction, tanehisi coates nonfiction, neal shusterman young peoples literature.
Her family is of africanamerican origin from new orleans. She gives an overview of what an erasure is, how it is constructed, and some of its possible intents, sharing examples of. New orleans, lapoet and national book award winner robin coste lewis will present a reading and lecture in conjunction with nomas. Adam johnson, tanehisi coates win national book awards npr. Usc dornsife doctoral student wins national book award. Shop for present and past winners of the national book award in fiction, nonfiction, young peoples literature, and poetry. Judges citation robin coste lewis s voyage of the sable venus is a meditation on the cultural depiction of the black female figure. Presented annually in the usa, by the national book foundation, to recognize achievements in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and young peoples literature. Hurstonwright legacy award 2015 hurstonwright legacy award in poetry, finalist best of lists. She received her mfa in poetry from nyu, and an mts in sanskrit and comparative religious literature from the divinity school at harvard university.
Author angela flournoy and poet robin coste lewis are finalists for national book awards. Robin coste lewis garners the prestigious literary honor for her first book of poems. The authors won the literary prize in the fiction and nonfiction categories, respectively. National book awards highlight issues of race new york post. Robin coste lewis is the author of voyage of the sable venus 2015, a finalist for the national book award. She is known for her book, voyage of the sable venus and other poems, winner of the national book award for poetry. As the winner of the award, lewis joins notable company. In 2015, her debut poetry collection, voyage of the sable venus knopf won the national book award in. Robin coste lewis interviewed by nicole sealey national. National book foundation 2015 national book award, winner. John simon guggenheim foundation robin coste lewis.
Robin coste lewis john simon guggenheim foundation. She was born in compton, california, and her family is from new orleans. Robin coste lewis, a doctoral student at the usc dornsife college of letters, arts and sciences, has won the national book award for poetry. Robin coste lewis national book award for voyage of the.
Also taking home awards were robin coste lewis, for her debut poetry collection, and neal shusterman. Robin coste lewis is an electrifying new voice in poetry whose first collection, voyage of the sable venus, won the national book award for poetry in 2015. Robin coste lewis is a provosts fellow in poetry and visual studies at the university of southern california. Laura mcneal chair national book foundationyoung peoples literature panel. When the 2015 national book awards were announced last month, robin coste lewis, a fellow at the university of southern california, was awarded. California book awards 85th annual california book awards, poetry finalist. Usc dornsife doctoral student wins national book award usc news. Lewis is the author of voyage of the sable venus 2015, winner of the national book award for poetryand the first poetry debut to win the award since 1974. Robin coste lewis story bio, facts, home, family, net. Both tender and arresting in her poetry, lewis is also an astute cultural critic, alert to the complexities of race and the black female voice.
She isa provosts fellow in poetry and visual studies at the university of southern california. Winner of the 2015 national book award for poetry, robin coste lewis s voyage of the sable venus is a meditation on the cultural depiction of the black female figure. Voyage of the sable venus and other poems the new yorker. At age six, robin coste lewis told her aunt that she wanted to be a writer. Usc dornsife doctoral candidate robin coste lewis has won the national book award for poetry, one of the nations most prestigious literary prizes. In 2015, her debut poetry collection, voyage of the sable venus knopf won the national book award in poetrythe first time a poetry debut by an africanamerican had ever won the prize in the national book foundations history, and the first time any debut had won the award since 1974 critics called the collection. Robin coste lewis episode the archive project podcast. Tanehisi coates, adam johnson win national book awards. In voyage of the sable venus, robin coste lewis skillfully reminds us of this, and reminds us that all art is drawn from the collective and merely colored by the individual.
She did her masters in sanskrit and in comparative religious literature from harvard divinity school. Robin coste lewis won the poetry award for her debut collection voyage of the sable venus. Robin coste lewis reads her poem the body in august on the campus of hampshire college in massachusetts. The national book foundation announced this years national book awards wednesday night, which means that macarthur genius grant recipient tanehisi coates. Lewis was declared the goldwater fellow in poetry at the new york university. Robin coste lewis, a doctoral student at the usc dornsife college of letters, arts and sciences, has won the national book award for poetry, one of the nations most prestigious literary prizes. The award would be out of the ordinary if only because this is. Lewis earned her mfa from nyus creative writing program where she was a goldwater fellow in. Usc dornsife doctoral student wins the national book award. Robin coste lewis is the author of voyage of the sable venus 2015, the winner of national book award for poetry. The academy of american poets is the largest membershipbased nonprofit organization fostering an appreciation for contemporary poetry and supporting american poets.
Lewis s book is a thrilling aesthetic anthem to the complexity of racea full embrace of its pleasure and horror, in equal parts. I heard her recite poems from the collection with her former teacher, yusef komunyakaa, at new york. Winners adam johnson, neal shusterman, robin coste lewis and tanehisi coates attend the 66th annual national book awards ceremony. Adam johnson, tanehisi coates win national book awards. Rediscover our fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and young peoples literature award winners through the years. The national book awards recognizes the best of american literature and seeks to enhance the cultural value of great writing in america while advancing the. The poetry award went to robin coste lewis, author of voyage of the sable venus knopf, which is her first book. I flipped through the books pages, read a couple poems, and then moved on walking out of the store emptyhanded. Robin coste lewis is the author of voyage of the sable venus. Brought up in compton, lewis overcame brain damage to become a poet, and this year won the national book award for the voyage of the.
Voyage of the sable venus by robin coste lewis book cover, 2015 isbn 9781101875438. Robin coste lewis is the author of voyage of the sable venus knopf, 2015, a national book award winner. Alum robin coste lewis wins national book award for poetry. Robin coste lewis acceptance speech 2015 national book awards. The award will assist in bringing lewiss work to a wider audience, which is good given the importance of what shes produced. The national book awards honor fiction, nonfiction, poetry and childrens books. Publishers weekly, which starred the collection, said lewis reworks fragments contextually rooted in ahistorical depictions of blackness, her meditations on the real origins of blackness are made visible. She accepted the award at the 66th annual national book awards ceremony, held on wednesday, november 18, in new york city, for her collection of poems that considers the roles desire and race play in the construction of the. National book awards american literary award britannica. In this episode of the archive project, poet, scholar, and national book award winner robin coste lewis presents on the race within erasure. Voyage of the sable venus national book foundation. Angela flournoy and robin coste lewis are national book. Robin coste lewiss award winning book, voyage of the sable venus.