Barbara Goldberg (born 1943) is an American poet, author, translator, and editor from Maryland.

Early life and education

Goldberg grew up in

Forest Hills, Queens Forest Hills is a neighborhood in the central portion of the borough of Queens in New York City. It is adjacent to Corona to the north, Rego Park and Glendale to the west, Forest Park to the south, Kew Gardens to the southeast and Flushing ...

> New York. She is a first generation American. Her parents were immigrants from Europe after fleeing from the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. The language her family spoke in their home was German. She attended Russell Sage Junior High. She attended

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...

for her undergraduate degree in philosophy. Goldberg graduated in 1963 with

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

recognition. Goldberg attended

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

for a

Master of Education The Master of Education (MEd or M.Ed. or Ed.M.; Latin ''Magister Educationis'' or ''Educationis Magister'') is a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. This degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum an ...

and graduated in 1970. She later earned her

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admi ...

degree from

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

in 1985.

Career

Goldberg started her poetry career in her 30s. Goldberg's poetry deals with themes including

magical realism Magical realism, magic realism, or marvelous realism is a style or genre of fiction and art that presents a realistic view of the world while incorporating magical elements, often blurring the lines between speculation and reality. ''Magical rea ...

, honesty, authenticity, sensual imagery, and wit. Goldberg was the Poet-in-Residence in

Howard County, Maryland Howard County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population is 334,529. Since there are no incorporated municipalities, there is no incorporated coun ...

in 1999. The program was sponsored by the Howard County Poetry and Literature Society. During her time in this position, Goldberg visited ten high schools in the county to teach poetry. She has received several grants from the Maryland Arts Council. She has also taught poetry and creative writing at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

, American University's MFA program, and the

Writer's Center The Writer's Center, founded in 1976, is an independent literary center that is housed in a 12,200-square-foot (1,130 m2) facility in the arts and entertainment district of Bethesda, Maryland. The organization consists of approximately 2,500 wr ...

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

. She was the executive editor of ''

Poet Lore ''Poet Lore'' is an English-language literary magazine based in Bethesda, Maryland. Established in 1889 by Charlotte Porter and Helen Archibald Clarke, two progressive young Shakespeare scholars who believed in the evolutionary nature of lite ...

'' magazine. Goldberg was a senior speechwriter for

AARP AARP, formerly the American Association of Retired Persons, is an interest group in the United States focusing on issues affecting those 50 and older. The organization, which is headquartered in Washington, D.C., said it had more than 38 ...

. Goldberg works as a series editor of Word Works International Editions. Goldberg has received two fellowships from the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

. One of these awards was for a $20,000 literacy fellowship. She has also been a fellow at

Yaddo Yaddo is an artists' community located on a estate in Saratoga Springs, New York. Its mission is "to nurture the creative process by providing an opportunity for artists to work without interruption in a supportive environment.". On March ...

, the

MacDowell Colony MacDowell is an artist's residency program in Peterborough, New Hampshire. The program was founded in 1907 by composer Edward MacDowell and his wife, pianist and philanthropist Marian MacDowell. Prior to July 2020, it was known as the MacDo ...

, and the

Virginia Center for the Creative Arts The Virginia Center for the Creative Arts (VCCA) is a residential artist community in Amherst, Virginia, USA. Since 1971, VCCA has offered residencies of varying lengths with flexible scheduling for international artists, writers, and composers at ...

. She has done readings and presented her works to several programs, organizations, and associations, including the

American Literary Translators Association The American Literary Translators Association (ALTA) is an organization in the United States dedicated to literary translation. ALTA promotes literary translation through its annual ALTA conference and year-round events structured around the creatio ...

, Associated of Writers and Writing Programs, the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...

, the

Folger Shakespeare Library The Folger Shakespeare Library is an independent research library on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., United States. It has the world's largest collection of the printed works of William Shakespeare, and is a primary repository for rare materia ...

, and the

Carter Center The Carter Center is a nongovernmental, nonprofit organization founded in 1982 by former U.S. president Jimmy Carter. He and his wife Rosalynn Carter partnered with Emory University after his defeat in the 1980 United States presidential ele ...

. Her works have been included in several literacy publications, including ''

Poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

'', the ''Paris'' ''Review'', the ''Harvard'' ''Review'', the ''Gettysburg'' ''Review'', ''Best'' ''American'' ''Poetry'', and the ''American'' ''Poetry'' ''Review''.

Awards

Goldberg has received several awards for her writing. She received two

PEN PEN may refer to: * (National Ecological Party), former name of the Brazilian political party Patriota (PATRI) * PEN International, a worldwide association of writers ** English PEN, the founding centre of PEN International ** PEN America, located ...

Syndicated Fiction Project Awards. In 2008, she received the Felix Pollak Prize in Poetry for ''The Royal Baker’s Daughter''. She also won the Valentin Krustev Award in translation for her work ''Transformation: The Poetry of Translation'', the Witter Bynner Foundation Award for ''The Stones Remember'', the Violet Reed Haas Poetry Prize for ''Marvelous Pursuits'', and the Camden Poetry Award for ''Cautionary Tales''. Her poem “Fortune’s Darling” won the Emily Dickinson Award.

Works

Poetry

* ''Berta Broadfoot and Pepin the Short: A Merovingian Romance'' (1986), , OCLC 729771175 * ''Cautionary Tales'' (1990), , OCLC 731523419 * ''Marvelous Pursuits'' (1995), , OCLC 32538889 * ''The Royal Baker's Daughter'' (2008), , OCLC 636803506 * ''Transformation'' (2019), , OCLC 1084561966

Translations

* ''The Fire Stays in Red: Poems'' by Ronny Someck (2002) translated by Goldberg and Israeli poet Moshe Dor, , OCLC 316869644 * ''Scorched by the Sun'', poems by Dor, , OCLC 930811146

Editor

* ''The Stones Remember: Native Israeli Poetry'' (1991) edited by Dor, Goldberg, and Giora Lesham, , OCLC 23930833 * ''The First Yes: Poems About Communicating'' (1996), , OCLC 35758082 * ''Open Door: Selected Poems from Poet Lore, 1980-1996'' (1996) by

Roland Flint Roland Henry Flint (February 27, 1934 - January 2, 2001) was an American poet and professor of English at Georgetown University. Life Born in Park River, North Dakota, he attended the University of North Dakota before joining the United States Ma ...

and edited by Goldberg, Philip K. Jason, and Geraldine Connolly, * ''After the First Rain: Israeli Poems on War and Peace'' (1998) edited by Dor and Goldberg, , OCLC 37890562

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldberg, Barbara 1943 births Mount Holyoke College alumni 21st-century American women writers Teachers College, Columbia University alumni People from Forest Hills, Queens Writers from Queens, New York 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American poets Poets from New York (state) 21st-century American poets American women poets American University alumni Living people