She was a much-honored poet, even in her lifetime, with the distinction of being the first Black author to win the Pulitzer Prize. Of her many duties, the most important, in her view, were visits to local schools. Gwendolyn Brooks was sixty-eight when she became the first black woman to be appointed to be poetry consultant to the Library of Congress. Thank you to all who’ve submitted for the 2020 Gwendolyn Brooks Youth Poetry Awards. Pulitzer Prize winner Gwendolyn Brooks, who wrote more than twenty books of poetry in her lifetime, was the first black woman appointed Poet Laureate of the United States. Throughout her works, Gwendolyn Brooks makes the assumption that the reader will look for the deeper meanings in her poems and ponder them. Gwendolyn Brooks is one of the most highly regarded, influential, and widely read poets of 20th-century American poetry. Although she is often popular, some of her audience was critical about her observations of the circumstances of the characters in her poems. Named for the late award-winning poet and Illinois Poet Laureate Gwendolyn Brooks, the contest promotes creative writing, … Reprinted by consent of Brooks Permissions. Gwendolyn Elizabeth Brooks was an African-American poet. Other critics praised the book for explaining the poet’s new orientation toward her racial heritage and her role as a poet. Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Award Scholarship - Maximum Amount: $500 - Application Deadline: June 30, 2021 - Secretary of State and State Librarian Jesse White is pleased to announce the Illinois Emerging Writers Competition, Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Award. Pulitzer Prize winner Gwendolyn Brooks, who wrote more than twenty books of poetry in her lifetime, was the first black woman appointed Poet Laureate of the United States. Her poems ranged in style from traditional ballads and sonnets to poems using blues rhythms in free verse. The submission deadline has now passed as of May 30. She was appointed Poet Laureate of Illinois in 1968 and Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress in 1985. - The Academy of American Poets is the largest membership-based nonprofit organization fostering an appreciation for contemporary poetry and supporting American poets. Best poems of Gwendolyn Brooks. She was an American poet and writer. Contest winners will be notified by July 31, 2020. More by Gwendolyn Brooks She was the first black person to win a Pulitzer prize for her second collection, Annie Allen. • Martha E. Rhynes: Gwendolyn Brooks: Poet from Chicago. Welcome to the fourth annual Gwendolyn Brooks Youth Poetry Awards (GBYPA)!