Stephen L. Burt, an associate professor of English, was named a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award in Criticism on Saturday.

“Close Calls with Nonsense: Reading New Poetry,” the book for which Burt was nominated, is a collection of critical essays on both modern and contemporary poetry from the last 30 years.

Burt, whose course offerings for the spring semester include an English seminar on 21st century American poetry, said that his interest in contemporary poetry is two-fold.

“First, I like to see the way poets respond to the way we’re living now,” he said. “Second, I like introducing poets who move me and stay with me to other readers.”

“I like trying to convince people that my favorite poets are worthy of sustained attention,” Burt added.

While Burt said he admires traditional poets, such as Keats, who have adorned the syllabi of English classes for years, he noted a distinction between writing about classic and contemporary poetry.

“Keats doesn’t need me to tell you that Keats is worth reading,” Burt said. “Writing about some of the living poets I’ve written about might help the poetry of the present survive into the realm of the future.”

Although several of the pieces included in “Close Calls with Nonsense” had previously appeared in various publications such as The London Review of Books, Burt said that he began to speak with publishers about compiling them into a book in 2005.

The book, which was published last year, includes essays on the work of several of Burt’s favorite contemporary poets, such as Rae Armantrout and Laura Kasischke.

The National Book Critics Circle, an organization that includes around 600 book reviewers, was founded in 1974 and has been giving annual awards ever since to highlight the best books and reviews written in the English language.

This year’s winners will be announced at New York City’s New School on March 11.

—Staff writer James K. McAuley can be reached at mcauley@fas.harvard.ed.

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