Narrative Poetry Award-Winning Books
In 2021, the Foundation established a poetry prize for books that represent the narrative poetry form that was Laura’s chosen style. The Laura Boss Narrative Poetry Award is an annual manuscript competition. The winner will receive $5,000 and the publication of their manuscript by NYQ Books.
The winning poet of the 2024 Laura Boss Narrative Poetry Award is Suzanne Cleary for her manuscript, The Odds. The final judge was Jan Beatty.
The Odds was published in Spring 2025 by NYQ Books. This award included a $5,000 prize, 25 author copies, and a featured reading at the book’s release at The Poetry Center at PCCC in Paterson, New Jersey.
Miriam Levine is the 2023 award winner. She is the author of five previous books of poetry and three books of prose. Her honors also include the Autumn House Poetry Prize. She is a fellow of the NEA, and a grantee of the Massachusetts Artists Foundation.
Levine is Professor Emerita at Framingham State University and lives in Florida and New Hampshire.
You may find more information about her work at miriamlevine.com.
In Man at the Railing, the 2022 winner of the Laura Boss Narrative Poetry Award, Edwin Romond explores how "joy and loss join hands across our lifetime." Drawing upon his family experiences, his four decades in public education, and his love of music and baseball, Romond's poetry suggests the past can be a teacher as well as a source of both inspiration and anguish. Man at the Railing is the work of a seasoned poet viewing the world and his place in it with clear eyes and a beating heart. Man at the Railing is available from Amazon and other booksellers.
