Pulitzer Prize Poetry Winner

Turtle Island

by Gary Snyder

Summary

These poems imagine North America under its older, indigenous name and call for a reinhabitation of the land grounded in Buddhist practice and ecological humility. Snyder's spare, image driven lines draw on Zen koans, Native traditions, and the working vocabulary of loggers and farmers. The book became a foundational text for the environmental movement and for a poetics rooted in place.

Historical Context & Significance

Snyder was a figure of the Beat Generation; his win marked the Pulitzer's embrace of "Deep Ecology".