When Larry Levis died suddenly in 1996, Philip Levine wrote that he had years earlier recognized Levis as “the most gifted and determined young poet I have ever had the good fortune to have in one of my classes. . . . His early death is a staggering loss for our poetry, but what he left is a major achievement that will enrich our lives.” Each of his books was published to wide critical acclaim, and David St. John has collected together the best of his work from his first five books. “It is not an exaggeration to say that…

The Performance It’s not right that she should do this to her body as she speaks, but it’s the only way we can understand her. We who weren’t raised on sand and cherry-pits. Whose stepfathers held their tempers. The South is a mean place we forget about. The windows boarded up all over town. She says, dogs chased her down the tar- soaked road like devils. Each dog with three heads, three tails. She says, we might’ve mocked her story, but never now. First, she strikes nails against her chest like matches. Then, when we think we can’t take more…

April is National Poetry Month, and that’s a big deal at UPP. The Pitt Poetry Series has been a vehicle for America’s finest contemporary poets since its inception in 1967. And we’re publishing more poetry than ever before! University of Pittsburgh Press is a proud participant sponsor of the Academy of American Poets and National Poetry Month.   

The State of the Art A Chronicle of American Poetry, 1988-2014 David Lehman POETRY **STARRED REVIEW** “Lehman, though primarily known as a poet (Yeshiva Boys, When a Woman Loves a Man, and others), is a fine editor (The Oxford Book of American Poetry) and nonfiction writer (A Fine Romance: Jewish Songwriters, American Songs) who teaches in the graduate writing program of the New School in New York City. He has also written the forewords to the prestigious annual showcase of new poems from Canada and the United States, The Best American Poetry, since its inception in 1988. This volume gathers…