Charles Simic

Charles Simic (born May 9, 1938) is an American poet. Born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, (now Serbia and Montenegro) his childhood was very traumatic, as Nazi and Allied bombers ravaged his homeland.

Related Topics:
May 9 - 1938 - American - Poet - Belgrade - Yugoslavia - Serbia and Montenegro

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Simic immigrated to the USA in 1953 to rejoin his father, who was living in New York City. They moved to Chicago shortly after his arrival. Simic first started to write poetry in high school, when he realized "that one of my friends was attracting the best-looking girls by writing them sappy love poems". His first poems were published in 1959, when he was twenty-one. Simic was drafted into the army in 1961. In 1966, he graduated from New York University while working nights to pay for his tuition.

Related Topics:
1953 - New York City - Chicago - 1959 - 1961 - 1966 - New York University

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Since that time, Simic has written prolifically, producing over 60 books of published both in the US and abroad. In 1973, Simic moved to New Hampshire, where he is now a professor of English at the University of New Hampshire. He and his wife, Helenne, have two children, Anna and Phillipe. In 1990, Simic won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry for his collection The World Doesn't End: Prose Poems. He has also won awards for his works Walking the Black Cat and Classic Ballroom Dances. Simic was elected to The American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1995, which can be considered the highest formal recognition of artistic merit in the United States. Simic served as the Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets from 2000 until 2002. If he wasn't a poet, Simic has mentioned that he would rather be a cook at a restaurant. Simic enjoys Mediterranean food.

Related Topics:
1973 - English - University of New Hampshire - 1990 - Pulitzer Prize - Poetry - The American Academy of Arts and Letters - 1995 - Academy of American Poets - 2000 - 2002 - Mediterranean

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Works:

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• What the Grass Says - 1967
• Unending Blues - 1986
• The World Doesn't End: Prose Poems - 1990 (Pulitzer Prize for Poetry)
• Hotel Insomnia 1992
• Dime-Store Alchemy: The Art of Joseph Cornell - 1993
• A Wedding in Hell - 1994
• Walking the Black Cat - 1996 (National Book Award in Poetry finalist)
• Jackstraws - 1999 (New York Times Notable Book of the Year)
• Selected Poems: 1963-2003 - 2004 (winner of the 2005 International Griffin Poetry Prize)
 
Charles Simic: References ►