University English Prof. Rita Dove, who won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1987, in addition to several other highly prestigious honors, will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Library of Virginia Oct. 18 for her career in poetry writing.
The award has been given annually for the past 11 years, Library of Virginia Spokesperson Jan Hathcock said, and past winners include Edgar Allen Poe, Anne Spencer, Booker T. Washington and, more recently, the late George Garrett, a former University professor. Though more than half of the first 10 awards were given posthumously, the Library has started looking forward to nominate living writers, Hathcock said. Last year’s Literary Lifetime Achievement Award was awarded to writer Tom Wolfe from Richmond, Va., who authored “The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test,” among other lauded works.
According to a University press release, Dove previously served from 1993 to 1995 as the poet laureate of the United States and consultant to the Library of Congress. She was the youngest and first black person to hold the position often considered the most prestigious official literary honor in the United States.
From 2004 to 2006, Dove served as the Poet Laureate for the commonwealth, and she currently holds more than 20 honorary degrees from various American colleges and universities. Also included in Dove’s substantial list of accolades are the 1996 Heinz Award in the Arts and Humanities, the 1996 National Humanities Medal, the 1997 Barnes and Noble Writers for Writers Award and the 2001 Duke Ellington Lifetime Achievement Award in the Literary Arts. The Akron, Ohio, native won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for her book of poetry, “Thomas and Beulah,” based on the experiences of her mother’s parents.
Dove said she was thrilled and honored to receive the award.
“Well, first of all, it’s overwhelming,” Dove said. “When somebody says, ‘lifetime achievement,’ that’s bigger than I can imagine.”
Thinking about the list of past recipients “floored” her, Dove said, noting that the extended nature of a lifetime achievement award makes this honor a humbling and truly special one on a level apart from previous accolades.
“The Pulitzer was amazing, of course, but it was for a single book,” Dove said. “A lifetime achievement award means that people are recognizing the whole journey I’ve taken as a writer.”
Hathcock noted that Dove’s obvious wealth of honors and achievements, and her significant achievements in the literary world, contributed greatly to her selection by the Library. An independent panel of judges made recommendations for the award, and Dove emerged as the most deserving candidate.
“She is a great teacher and a wonderful poet,” Hathcock said.
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