That was the best acceptance speech for anything ive ever heard in my life. Judge archives page 20 of 28 national book foundation. English professor and 2011 national book award winner nikky finney was recently appointed the inaugural guy davenport endowed english professor, an award honoring one of uks most distinguished professors. Nikky finneys award speech tops record year for black. Finney was born lynn carol finney, 1 of 3 children, and the only daughter, of ernest a. An alumna of talladega college, and author of four books of poetry and a short story cycle, finney is an advocate for social. Nikky finneys 2011 national book awards in poetry acceptance speech by national book foundation. There was a lot of standing with signs, there was a lot of shouting. Nikky finney, jesmyn ward take national book awards poets. Nikky finney has 19 books on goodreads with 4837 ratings. Tom drury, pacific elizabeth graver, the end of the point rachel kushner, the flamethrowers jhumpa lahiri, the lowland anthony marra, a constellation of vital phenomena james mcbride, the good lord bird alice mcdermott, someone thomas pynchon, bleeding edge. Nikky finney, national book award acceptance speech, 2011 in nikky finneys acceptance speech for the 2011 national book award for poetry, she began with history. Nikky finney reads margaret walkers for my people poetry.
Finney, uks first national book award winner, attended the award ceremony in new york city nov. Finney is currently a professor of english and creative writing at the university kentucky. Dancing with strom by nikky finney poetry foundation. She is in the english department at the university of kentucky. Nikky finney acceptance speech national book award for poetry.
Awards host john lithgow called this the best acceptance speech for anything i have ever heard. Her acceptance speech has gone viral among the literati. National book awardwinner nikky finney returns to conway for. Conway is planning a big welcome home event for poet, educator, advocate and national book award winner nikky finney friday at coastal carolina university and saturday at the conway city hall. After all, history does not keep books on the handiwork of slaves. National book award for young peoples literature, winners and finalists. Nikky finney is an award winning, southernborn poet, whose critically acclaimed work is imbued with a distinct sense of lyricism and recurring themes of both social justice and communal history. November 16, 2011, 2011 national book awards ceremony, cipriani, wall street, nyc. Nikky finneys 2011 national book awards in poetry acceptance. Poteats parents discussed their journey from intolerance to acceptance, and queeridentifying. Finneys acceptance speech for her award combined poetry with a gorgeously stated. Nikky finney born august 26, 1957 is an award winning africanamerican poet and academic. Nikky finney born lynn carol finney on august 26, 1957 in conway, south carolina is an american poet.
Get your team aligned with all the tools you need on one secure, reliable video platform. You will find her in the poets corner, directly across from chuck berrys 1973 candy apple red cadillac eldorado. Finney s acceptance speech at the awards ceremony was as poetic as. Apr 21, 2016 i can tell you what freedom means to me. Finney attended the award ceremony last night in new york city, where she accepted the highly prestigious honor. She published her first book in 1985, and has taught writing for years at. A truly mustread collection from one of americas greatest rising poets. In 20, she accepted a position at the university of south carolina as the.
Nikky finney was inducted into the south carolina academy of authors in 20. Finney is the provosts distinguished service professor of english at the university of kentucky, and lives in lexington. This is perhaps the most appropriate response to the questions set forth by national book award winning poet nikky finneys remarkable guestcurated series at the nickelodeon theatre. She published her first book in 1985, and has taught writing for years at the. She is a founding member of the affrilachian poets. National book award for translated literature, winners and finalists. An alumna of talladega college, and author of four books of poetry and a short story cycle, finney is an advocate for social justice and cultural preservation. Nikky finney was born at the rim of the atlantic ocean, in south carolina, in 1957. Her carefully crafted acceptance speech at the awards ceremony, touching on race. On creativity and slowing down bauhan publishing, 2011, now in its sixth edition, and the tortoise diariesdaily meditations on creativity and slowing down 2014.
The video above has the speeches from the presenters of the four awards and the award winners acceptance speeches. National book awardwinning poet nikky finney will edit a usc press poetry series. She has received numerous awards for her work, including a pen america open book award and the benjamin franklin award for poetry. National book awards are currently given to one book author annually in each of five categories.
Current and previous winners of the national book awards, with information on the award and the books which have won it. Even the ceremonys emcee, actor john lithgow, exclaimed, thats the best acceptance. Finney is a founding member of the affrilachian poets, a group of black appalachian poets. Finney s father began his career as a civil rights attorney, and. Nikky finneys 2011 national book award in poetry acceptance. John lithgow revisit nikky finney s phenomenal national book award acceptance speech in the video linked below. Nikky finney 1957 was born in south carolina and educated at talladega college. Nov 21, 2011 nikky finneys 2011 national book award in poetry acceptance speech. The four recipients of the 2011 national book awards are jesmyn ward in fiction for her novel salvage the bones. Finney has taught at uk for decades and is a member of the affrilachian poets group that includes frank x walker and kelly norman ellis. Nikky finney, the 61st national book of poetry award winner.
Citylit welcomes national book award winner nikky finney as the keynote speaker at the 17th annual citylit festival on saturday, march 21, 2020, 9. Of the four honorees, two were african american women who spoke about the importance of literature that represents black experiences. Her new collection of poems, love childs hotbed of occasional poetry, is forthcoming in 2020 from triquarterly books. Thomas sayers ellis was born and raised in washington, dc. One of the most outstanding africanamerican poets of the turnofthecentury, nikky finney presents her second collection of poetry in rice. Aug 05, 2006 and, finally, heres the longlist for the national book award for fiction. She also thanks her favorite teacher for encouraging her to read every book in. Current and previous winners of the national book awards. Nikky finney acceptance speech national book award for. See more ideas about national book award, black arts movement and civil rights attorney. National book award winners, from left, stephen greenblatt, thanhha lai, nikky finney, and jesmyn ward, at the nov.
Uk professor nikky finney wins national book award for. Chair of southern literature and creative writing at the university of south carolina, has benefited firsthand from the counsel and. Apr 09, 2014 nikky finney is a brilliant american poet, winner of, among many awards, the 2011 national book award for poetry check out here awesome acceptance speech here. Hurricane katrina novel wins national book award cbs news. Herald leader, described it four days later as a spokenword poem that has flown around the world and back along digital wires, bringing tears and awe in its wake. That personal bias aside, this is an astounding, moving work by a woman who splits herself and you wide open as she pours out raw, haunting stories of her familys experience growing up poor, black and strong in southern america. The national book foundation, which sponsors the awards, presented two of its five major prizes to africanamerican women. Northwestern university press book wins national book. National book awardwinning poet nikky finney knows the benefit of a good mentor. In short, all that is breathtaking in this poets acceptance speech is breathtaking in her poems. Ward, finney are among 2011 national book award winners pbs. Apr 08, 2012 the beauty and difficulty of poet nikky finney art is about being provocative, says the award winning poet. National book award 2011 winners jesmyn ward and nikky.
National book award 2011 winners jesmyn ward and nikky finney tackle race and history video the national book awards 2011 winners exhibited diversity in the literary world. According to the huffington post, actor john lithgow, host of the awards ceremony in new york city, commented that nikky finney gave the best acceptance speech ive ever heard for anything in my life. On nikkey finneys acceptance speech for the 2011 poetry award, john litgow said, that was the best acceptance speech for anything ive ever heard in my life. Some of my favorite poems in the book are black orion, burning hair and the goodfellows club. Todays selection was the first finney poem i encountered, girlfriends train, read by the poet herself. Nov 29, 2011 nikky finneys acceptance speech for her 2011 national book award for poetry deserves an honor all by itself. Nikky finney was my poetry teacher and mentor at the university of kentucky years ago.
Finding a window by kimberly reyes poetry foundation. Nikky finney won the national book award for poetry this year for head off and split. Through the years finney harnessed that indignation into something beautiful and often healing. How nikky finney found her own path to poetry ever since she was 19 years old, nikky finney dreamed of being a poet. The beauty and difficulty of poet nikky finney wfsu. National book award for poetry, winners and finalists. On display this april is the work of kentucky poet nikky finney, who won the national book award last november for her. And the story goes as most stories commence, nikky said, paraphrase because as i get older memory fails toni wanted paper to write as she lay in the hospital.
Nikky finney was born in south carolina, within listening distance of the sea. She is an award winning american poet, respected academic, and social justice and cultural preservation advocate. The national book awards is one of the most anticipated events in the publishing world. South carolina poet nikky finney hadnt planned on writing an acceptance speech for the national book award dinner in 2011. Nikky finney s acceptance speech at the 2011 national book awards historical artifact finney links both her desire to write poetryengage in literacy and the laws forbidding enslaved black people to learn to read and write. The poet demonstrates what can never be controlled. Nikky finney is an awardwinning poet and the provosts.
Nikky finney is an award winning poet and the provosts distinguished service professor of english at the university of. Nikki will share from her forthcoming collection love childs hotbed of occasional poetry, years after her legendary national book award acceptance speech for. April is national poetry month, a time when bookstores proudly display those slim volumes usually hidden in the back. Nikky finneys work, in book form and video, including her now legendary acceptance speech, is on display in the inaugural exhibition of the african american museum of history and culture in washington, d. Not only does her story prove that a person with a dream can make that dream a reality, but that an african. Nikky finney wins national book award for poetry chicago tribune.
Published by triquarterly, an imprint of northwestern university press, her book of poetry has been described as an impassioned summary of africanamerican history. Nikky finney and jesmyn ward win national book awards. Nikky finney, jesmyn ward take national book awards. Oct, 2011 a creative writing professor at the university of kentucky has been named a finalist for the 2011 national book award in poetry. Uk professor nikky finney wins national book award for poetry. Nikky finney appointed guy davenport endowed english. Nikky finney, acceptance speech at national book awards, 2011 one.
Uk creative writing professor, nikky finney, wins prestigious. Jeffrey eugenides is americas toughest novelist the. She was the guy davenport endowed professor of english at the university of kentucky for twenty years. Currently the provosts distinguished service professor of english at the university of kentucky, finney is the author of four books of poetry and a. Featuring introductions by john lithgow and elizabeth. This is perhaps the most appropriate response to the questions set forth by national book award winning poet nikky finney s remarkable guestcurated series at the nickelodeon theatre. Citylit project nurturing the culture of literature. Finneys acceptance speech at the awards ceremony was as poetic as anything in her winning book. Ive never heard a better acceptance speech in my life. Nikky finney acceptance speech national book award for poetry duration. In a 2011 interview with poets and writers magazine, finney declared, im trying to have a conversation about truth. The panelists are five writers who are known to be doing great work in their genre or field.
Nikky finneys award speech tops record year for black women. Nov 15, 20 but nothing resonates the way nikky finneys national book award speech does. Nikky finney in addition to the national book award, finney has received a pen american open book award and the benjamin franklin award for poetry in addition to the national book award, finney has received a pen american open book award and the benjamin franklin award for poetry. Nikky finney was born by the sea in south carolina and raised during the civil rights, black power, and black arts movements. She won the pen american open book award in 1996 and the elizabeth oneill verner. Please practice handwashing and social distancing, and check out our resources for adapting to these times. South carolina poet nikky finney featured at new african.
Finney is also a founding member of the affrilachian poets, a group of black appalachian poets. First up, poet elizabeth alexander, who read a poem at barack obamas inauguration, presenting the national book award for poetry. Poet nikky finney was born in 1957 in south carolina. Finneys acceptance speech at the awards ceremony was as poetic as. Nikky finney, daughter of civil rights workers, sees herself playing with the hottest, blue tongue of the flame as a witness with a pencil to the struggles of black people and her family in the south. Nov 18, 2011 nikky finney helped me and others in the audience find the true meaning of honor of honoring those who without measure of quantity pour generously into our lives. Finney, uks first national book award winner, attended the award ceremony last night in new york city, where she accepted the highly prestigious honor. One of three children, finney is the only daughter of ernest a. Nikky finney has been writing poetry since she was a teenager, but those early attempts were often terrible, horrible rants, as she describes them. In addition to ward, nikky finney won the national book award for poetry. Art is also about beauty and if you leave the latter out, the former doesnt matter.
Nikky finney s acceptance speech for her 2011 national book award for poetry deserves an honor all by itself. The category poetry was established in 1950 and has been awarded annually save. She keeps the glassy eyes and soft innards of american history. Nov 16, 2011 the 2011 national book awards were announced at a ceremony in new york wednesday night. South carolina poet nikky finney never meant to write the speech that earned her a place in history at the new national museum of african american history and culture in washington. The beauty and difficulty of poet nikky finney wbur news. In south carolina, enslaved people were explicitly barred from becoming literate by the negro act of 1740, enacted in response to the stono rebellion the previous year. The girlfriends train poem by nikky finney poem hunter. Nba host, john lithgow, as the best acceptance speech everfor anything. Nikky finney wins national book award for poetry chicago. In 20, she accepted a position at the university of south carolina as the john h.
Finney has long encouraged other lesbian poets to write, publish, and read their. The national book awards acceptance speech for poetry. Guy mattison davenport, author, poet, painter and critic, retired in 1990 as a uk distinguished alumni professor of english. The daughter of activists and educators, she began writing in the midst of the civil rights and black arts movements. Dec 01, 2011 how nikky finney found her own path to poetry ever since she was 19 years old, nikky finney dreamed of being a poet. Nikky finney pennys poetry pages wiki fandom powered. Her acceptance speech was described by the 2011 nba host, john lithgow, as the best acceptance. The national book award for poetry is one of five annual national book awards, which are given by the national book foundation to recognize outstanding literary work by us citizens. The daughter of a lawyer and teacher, finneys parents were both active in the civil rights movement and her childhood was shaped by the turmoil and unrest of the south in the 1960s and 70s.