Lucille Clifton back to Tucson, one of our most distinguished
American poets.
Born in Depew, New York, she was educated at Howard University
and Manfredonia State College.
She's the author of 10 books of poetry,
a family memoir titled "Generations,"
and a series of some 20 plus miraculous books for children.
Among her honors are the Shelley Memorial prize, the Juniper
prize, two NEA fellowships, the Coretta Scott King award,
and an Emmy award from the American Academy of Television
Arts and Sciences.
She is the only poet to have two books in one year become
finalists for the Pulitzer Prize.
Those were "Good Woman: Poems and a Memoir, 1969 to 1980"
and "Next: New Poems," both published in 1987.
They were followed by "Quilting," "The Book of Light,"
and in 1996, "The Terrible Stories."
That last book was a finalist for the LA Times Book
Award, the Lenore Marshall prize, and the National Book
Award, and came out last May in England.
The voice of a poet is what convinces us to listen and hold
onto the words of the poem.
The sense of voice is much more than the simple physical sounds
of speech.
Once heard, poet John Haines wrote,
the voice creates the environment of thought
and feeling, which we come to accept and believe
in as an unmistakable mark of the poet's work.
Voice is something that can only be
discovered in the act of living and working,
and nourished until it becomes as much a part
of the person as an arm or leg.
Whether she is exploring the legacy of slavery,
the struggle of body and soul against illness,
or the contradictory nature of our culture's most
sacred stories, Clifton's voice is
that of the human spirit finding its troubled way from darkness
into light.
A voice that mothers us right to the brink of redemption.
Please welcome Lucille Clifton.
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]
Thank you.
Thank you very much.