Robin Walter’s ‘Little Mercy’ receives poetry academy’s First Book Award

NEW YORK (AP) — Robin Walter’s “Little Mercy” has won the 2024 Academy of American Poets’ First Book Award. Walter will receive $5,000 and a six-week residency in Umbria, Italy. Her book will be published next year by Graywolf Press. The academy itself plans to purchase thousands of copies and distribute them to members. Walter’s book was chosen by fellow poet Victoria Chang. She called her work “melodious and wise” in a statement Wednesday. Walter’s debut collection of verse celebrates the natural world.