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Ace Boggess

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Ace Boggess

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Born
in The United States
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Member Since
May 2013


Ace Boggess' writing has appeared in Michigan Quarterly Review, Harvard Review, Mid-American Review, Atlanta Review, RATTLE, River Styx, Southern Humanities Review, J Journal, North Dakota Quarterly, and many other journals. He won the Robert Bausch Fiction Award and a fellowship from the West Virginia Commission on the Arts. He also spent five years in a West Virginia prison. He lives in Charleston, West Virginia, where he writes and tries to stay out of trouble. ...more

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Ace Boggess Lev Grossman's The Magicians. In a world powered by Gen-X angst, I think I could be a god. Alternately, Huxley's Brave New World. I'd take the soma, d…moreLev Grossman's The Magicians. In a world powered by Gen-X angst, I think I could be a god. Alternately, Huxley's Brave New World. I'd take the soma, do my job, and just be approximately happy. It's a toss-up, really. The struggle between desires for numb happiness and channeled emotional explosiveness is at the heart of most Great art. (less)
Ace Boggess That's an easy one. My 2nd poetry book THE PRISONERS was written entirely in prison, with most of the poems published in journals while I was inside a…moreThat's an easy one. My 2nd poetry book THE PRISONERS was written entirely in prison, with most of the poems published in journals while I was inside and the acceptance letter for the book arriving on the day I made it out. It gives me a warm glow to know that the book actually was used for a while in a writing class at the prison where I wrote it (especially since the prison didn't really have a writing class while I was there).

As for CORRECTIONS IN INK, I intend to read that soon. It looks marvelous. Have to be careful on sending inmates books, though. Each state has its own rules. In WV, inmates can have six books at a time, and they have to come directly from Amazon. Some places allow them to come from other sources like the publisher or a third-party group such as Appalachian Prison Project out of Morgantown. Also, it's 50/50 whether an inmate can have hardback books, so in some states you might have to wait a year until the paperback edition is available. In any case, it's best to ask the inmate what the rules are in that state and more specifically that facility.

Thanks for the question. Brought me good thoughts this morning.
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Average rating: 4.61 · 204 ratings · 57 reviews · 39 distinct works
Ultra Deep Field

4.68 avg rating — 22 ratings — published 2017 — 2 editions
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The Prisoners

4.63 avg rating — 19 ratings — published 2014
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I Have Lost the Art of Drea...

4.94 avg rating — 16 ratings — published 2018 — 2 editions
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A Song Without a Melody

4.64 avg rating — 14 ratings — published 2016
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Abuse Cycle

4.07 avg rating — 15 ratings — published 2016
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Escape Envy

4.91 avg rating — 11 ratings — published 2021
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States of Mercy

4.80 avg rating — 10 ratings — published 2019
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Wild Sweet Notes II: More G...

4.40 avg rating — 10 ratings — published 2005 — 2 editions
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Misadventure

4.88 avg rating — 8 ratings — published 2020
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The Beautiful Girl Whose Wi...

really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 7 ratings — published 2003
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West Virginia Book Festival

If you happen to be in West Virginia Saturday (10/25), stop by the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center for the WV Book West Virginia Book Festival. I'll be signing books at the WV Writers table from 10 to 11 a.m. Come by and say hello.
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Published on October 23, 2025 05:04 Tags: book, gratitude, pandemic, poems, poetry

Ace’s Recent Updates

Ace Boggess rated a book it was amazing
Anima Rising by Christopher Moore
Anima Rising
by Christopher Moore (Goodreads Author)
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It’s a tradition when a Christopher Moore book is released that I read it aloud to my partner. There is nothing quite like the sight of partly-chewed bright-orange lamb korma flying through the air when a joke lands, or coffee spraying across the roo ...more
Escape Envy by Ace Boggess
"Many beautifully written poems that tug at your heartstrings and think about life. I won this book in a goodreads giveaway, thank you!"
Ace Boggess rated a book it was amazing
Burnout Diary by Abby Hosterman
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Abby Hosterman writes with clarity and heart, a powerful combination. Her first full-length collection explores the struggles of family with an earnestness that makes you, the reader, feel like you are there, living these poems, experiencing the beau ...more
The Best American Poetry 2025 by David Lehman
" Yes, David is retiring and the series isn't going to continue without him. It's a disappointment, but hopefully something similar will step in to fill ...more "
Ace Boggess rated a book it was amazing
The Best American Poetry 2025 by David Lehman
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I absolutely hate that this is the final volume of this series. It makes me truly sad. At least it goes out well. The poems in this volume are mostly excellent. I’ll read it again many times in the years to come, and I’ll enjoy it as I mourn the loss ...more
My Pandemic / Gratitude List by Ace Boggess
"One of the best things this guy has ever written"
Ace Boggess entered a giveaway
Resonant Blue and Other Stories by Mary Vensel White
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Feller by Denton Loving
Feller
by Denton Loving (Goodreads Author)
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My Pandemic / Gratitude List by Ace Boggess
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Quotes by Ace Boggess  (?)
Quotes are added by the Goodreads community and are not verified by Goodreads. (Learn more)

“There are basically three types of songs: loved songs, unloved songs, and transitional songs written by tired people in between the two. Love songs are cheesy, unloved songs are depressing, and transitional songs are poetry. Transitions catch the world on fire, touching on relevant topics while speaking with giddiness and despair of the lover between.”
Ace Boggess, A Song Without a Melody

“These friendly eyes, these lustful eyes, these hopeless, sad, dispirited eyes, these energetic amber eyes needing no escape, these serpent's eyes, cat's eyes, sorcerer's eyes, the eyes of future family men, funeral directors, and unsuspecting officers of the law, the mischievous eyes of plotters and planners, soon-to-be soldiers, or underworld attorneys on retainer, the eyes of maniacs and fanatics, hipsters and wallflowers, dreamers and the object of dreams, I gazed into them all and knew that they were human eyes, each pair offering insight toward a new tomorrow.”
Ace Boggess, A Song Without a Melody
tags: eyes

“This sludge oozes like a dying sea snake, though it tastes like it's already dead. Some evil force made up this concoction, intending to release it to wreak havoc on an unsuspecting world. But the creator made the mistake of tasting his creation and passed on. The world was saved for a moment. Still, like the black plague, this thing refused to fade out forever. I'm sad to report that our good friend Cliff behind the bar rediscovered it. Now it's spreading around the world as if carried by rats.”
Ace Boggess, A Song Without a Melody

Topics Mentioning This Author

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Ultimate Popsugar...: Post your 2018 reading lists! 1141 6175 Nov 17, 2019 07:53PM  
“There are basically three types of songs: loved songs, unloved songs, and transitional songs written by tired people in between the two. Love songs are cheesy, unloved songs are depressing, and transitional songs are poetry. Transitions catch the world on fire, touching on relevant topics while speaking with giddiness and despair of the lover between.”
Ace Boggess, A Song Without a Melody

“These friendly eyes, these lustful eyes, these hopeless, sad, dispirited eyes, these energetic amber eyes needing no escape, these serpent's eyes, cat's eyes, sorcerer's eyes, the eyes of future family men, funeral directors, and unsuspecting officers of the law, the mischievous eyes of plotters and planners, soon-to-be soldiers, or underworld attorneys on retainer, the eyes of maniacs and fanatics, hipsters and wallflowers, dreamers and the object of dreams, I gazed into them all and knew that they were human eyes, each pair offering insight toward a new tomorrow.”
Ace Boggess, A Song Without a Melody
tags: eyes

“One beautiful moment can rob an entire day of its despair.”
Ace Boggess, States of Mercy
tags: hope

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