GOODISON, Lorna

Lorna Goodison (Jamaica/USA, IWP '83) is Poet Laureate of Jamaica and among the most celebrated living Caribbean writers. Her 12 books of poetry include the collections I Am Becoming My Mother (1986, Commonwealth Poetry Prize for the Americas) and Oracabessa (2014, OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature). Goodison is the author of three short story collections; From Harvey River: A Memoir of My Mother and Her People received the 2007 British Columbia National Award for Canadian Non-Fiction. A recipient of the Musgrave Medal by the Institute of Jamaica in recognition of her contribution to the arts, Goodison is a Professor of English and Afroamerican and African Studies at the University of Michigan.