Copyright © 2020 by The Estate of Lucille T. Clifton.
Foreword copyright © 2020 by Aracelis Girmay.
All rights reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
First Edition
20 21 22 23 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For information about permission to reuse any material from this book, please contact The Permissions Company at www.permissionscompany.com or e-mail permdude@gmail.com.
Publications by BOA Editions, Ltd.—a not-for-profit corporation under section 501 (c) (3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code—are made possible with funds from a variety of sources, including public funds from the Literature Program of the National Endowment for the Arts; the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency; and the County of Monroe, NY. Private funding sources include the Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation; the Mary S. Mulligan Charitable Trust; the Rochester Area Community Foundation; the Ames-Amzalak Memorial Trust in memory of Henry Ames, Semon Amzalak, and Dan Amzalak; the LGBT Fund of Greater Rochester; and contributions from many individuals nationwide. See Colophon on for special individual acknowledgments. |
Cover Design: Sandy Knight
Interior Design and Composition: Richard Foerster
BOA Logo: Mirko
BOA Editions books are available electronically through BookShare, an online distributor offering Large-Print, Braille, Multimedia Audio Book, and Dyslexic formats, as well as through e-readers that feature text to speech capabilities.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Clifton, Lucille, 1936-2010, author. | Girmay, Aracelis, editor.
Title: How to carry water : selected poems of Lucille Clifton / edited by Aracelis Girmay.
Description: First edition. | Rochester, NY : BOA Editions, Ltd., 2020. | Series: American poets continuum series ; no. 180 | Includes index. | Summary: “A series of poems drawn from various collections published throughout the 40-year career of American poet Lucille Clifton”— Provided by publisher.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020019710 (print) | LCCN 2020019711 (ebook) | ISBN 9781950774142 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781950774159 (paperback) | ISBN 9781950774166 (ebook)
Subjects: LCGFT: Poetry.
Classification: LCC PS3553.L45 H69 2020 (print) | LCC PS3553.L45 (ebook) | DDC 811/.54—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020019710
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020019711
BOA Editions, Ltd.
250 North Goodman Street, Suite 306
Rochester, NY 14607
A. Poulin, Jr., Founder (1938–1996)