In “Facing It,” a visitor to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial sees a woman reflected in the black stone. For a moment, she seems to be rubbing away the names. Then he realizes she is brushing a boy’s hair. That small correction is a good place to start with Yusef Komunyakaa: the poem is open to read on CommonLit.
On November 12, the Library of Congress announced that Komunyakaa would receive the 2026 Rebekah Johnson Bobbitt National Prize for Poetry for lifetime achievement. The $10,000 prize is awarded every two years and can recognize a recent book or a body of work. The committee that recommended Komunyakaa singled out “Facing It” in its citation. Read the ending against the opening, where the speaker sees his own face in the granite: the wall holds the names still while the people in its reflection keep moving.
For a longer read, look for “Neon Vernacular: New and Selected Poems,” the collection that won Komunyakaa the 1994 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. Wesleyan University Press lists a 1993 sales date and separate ISBNs for the paperback (9780819512116) and ebook (9780819574534). If you’re searching a library catalog, use the ISBN for the format you want, then check whether your library has a copy you can borrow or place on hold.
The Library’s event notice links to free public registration for the ceremony on Thursday, December 3, at 6 p.m. Eastern in the Thomas Jefferson Building in Washington, D.C. A display of items from the Library’s collections is scheduled for 5 p.m. Komunyakaa is due to speak about his career and then talk with poet Dante Micheaux.