Lucille Clifton

Born: June 27, 1936 in Depew, New York
Died: February 13, 2010 in Baltimore, Maryland

Education:
Howard University, Washington, DC 1953-1955
Fredonia State Teachers College, New York 1955

Lucille Clifton, a distinguished African-American poet, had an accomplished career as a poet-in-residence and professor at several universities and colleges including, Coppin State University, St. Mary’s College, George Washington University, University of California, and Duke University.  She also served as the Poet Laureate of Maryland, Chancellor for the Academy of Poets and as a trustee for the Enoch Pratt Free Library.

Wallace R. Peppers wrote in the Dictionary of Literary Biography, "She writes of her family because she is greatly interested in making sense of their lives and relationships; she writes of adversity and success in the ghetto community; and she writes of her role as a poet".

Awards and Honors:
Poet Laureate of Maryland, 1976-1985
American Library Association Coretta Scott King Award, 1984
National Book Award, 2000
Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize, 2007
Honorary Degrees from the University of Maryland and Towson State University

Lucille Clifton Remembered:
Remembering Lucille Clifton, from The New Yorker by Elizabeth Alexander.
Lucille Clifton, Poet Who Explored Intricacies of Black Lives, Dies at 73, from The New York Times.
Lucille Clifton, one-time poet laureate of Md., dies at 73, from The Baltimore Sun.

Find Lucille Clifton's works in Enoch Pratt Free Library's catalog:
Voices : poems 1st ed.
Mercy : poems
Blessing the boats : new and selected poems, 1988-2000
more 

Find other books by Lucille Clifton in libraries around the state.