BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana’s next poet laureate will be Alison Pelegrin, a Covington native who will succeed Mona Lisa Saloy beginning Aug. 14, state officials announced Thursday.
“The Poet Laureate acts as Louisiana’s literary ambassador, and Alison’s long record of teaching, sharing, and producing poetry that engages readers makes her a perfect fit as the preeminent poet of our state,” said Gov. John Bel Edwards said in a news release. “Her work is both beautifully crafted and appeals to a broad range of readers, and it will undoubtedly help elevate poetry in the public consciousness.”
As Louisiana poet laureate for the next two years, Pelegrin will travel the state, encouraging residents to explore and engage with poetry.
Pelegrin is currently the writer-in-residence at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, and her works include four collections of poetry: “Our Lady of Bewilderment,” “Waterlines,” “Hurricane Party” and “Big Muddy River of Stars.”
She is also the 2006 Akron Poetry Prize winner, and her chapbook, “Our Lady of the Flood,” won the Diode 2018 chapbook prize and an Eric Hoffer Award.
In addition to Saloy, previous poets laureate include John Warner Smith, Jack Bedell, Brenda Marie Osbey, Darrell Bourque, Julie Kane, Ava Leavell Haymon and Peter Cooley.
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