Book Mark: T.S. Eliot Prize for Poetry Awarded

Courtesy CBC.ca:

Scottish poet John Burnside has been named winner of the T.S. Eliot Prize for Poetry for his collection Black Cat Bone.
 
He won the £15,000 ($23,335 Cdn) award at a ceremony at the Haberdashers' Hall in London, on Monday. The prize marks more recognition for the collection, following his October win of the £10,000 ($15,560) Forward Prize.

Black Cat Boneis "a haunting book of great beauty, powered by love, childhood memory, human longing and loneliness," the judges said.

Burnside, 56, was born in Scotland, moved away in 1965, returned in 1995 and now teaches at the University of St. Andrews in St. Andrews. He has written 11 collections of poetry.

This year's prize race was controversial, after two poets withdrew because a private investment management firm, Aurum, is a sponsor of the award. Poets John Kinsella and Alice Oswald dropped from the race in December saying the company’s business practices were contrary to their principles.

Burnside said he never considered withdrawing over sponsorship, and was glad to see a company willing to boost poetry.

His other competitors:

• U.K. poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy, The Bees
• Leontia Flynn, Profit and Loss
• David Harsent, Night
• Esther Morgan, Grace
• Daljit Nagra, Tippoo Sultan's Incredible White-Man Eating Tiger-Toy Machine!!!
• Sean O'Brien, November (Picador Poetry)
• Bernard O'Donoghue, Farmers Cross. by Bernard O'Donoghue