After winning with a poem on grief and Caribbean rituals, writer Malika Booker, made history by becoming the first woman to win a prestigious prize twice.
At the Forward Prizes for Poetry, the writers piece, Libation, took top honors. It was composed, she claimed, “when funeral rituals weren’t possible” during the Covid-19 lockdowns, which led her to ponder the significance of such events.
The lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University further stated that receiving recognition from her colleagues meant so much. The institution boasted that the prizes honored “excellence in contemporary poetry” and were the most “widely coveted” in the UK and Ireland for recently released poetry.
They said Booker’s poem was about “loss, funeral wakes and how ancient traditions are handed down”.
They also stated it was about how young people “re-enact, despite not fully understanding its meaning, the act of libation — a drink poured in honour of the dead.”
Revealing her inspiration during the lockdown, Booker said: “It got me thinking about my ancestors and how young black boys today recreate the ritual of throwing alcohol on the ground at wakes.
“The epiphany for me was acknowledging black on black violence and the fragility of life.”
She said she felt “honoured, grateful and overwhelmed” to be awarded the prize, as “being judged and recognised by my peers means so much”.
“I wouldn’t be where I am today without such a strong community of poets who’ve invested in me, and it was inspiring to see so many of the poets I’ve personally mentored at the ceremony,” according to her.
“Reads like a drink,” Judge Chris Redmond commented on Booker’s writing.
He termed it a “slow pour of linguistic libation that funnels the reader down into the depths of ritual, grief, culture and society” .
“It works hard to tread so lightly and holds all of this with tenderness and love,” he added.
In 2020, Booker won the annual award for outstanding single poem for The Little Miracles, a poem about taking care of her mother after she had a stroke.
Booker joins Professor Carol Ann Duffy, Professor Michael Symmons Roberts, and Kim Moore as Forward Prize winners who have taught at Manchester Writing School.
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