New Poet Laureate named

WASHINGTON, June 14 (UPI) -- Donald Hall has been named America's new poet laureate, succeeding Ted Kooser, who has held the position since 2004.

"It's an opportunity to plug poetry," said Hall, 77. "Other laureates have done a good job, and I'm trying to figure out what I should do."

Hall has published 15 books of poetry in his six-decade writing career, most recently "White Apples and the Taste of Stone: Selected Poems 1946-2006" -- which includes what the former poet laureate said were two of his favorite poems, "Names of Horses" and "Maple Syrup."

Other poets and critics praise the book-length poem called "The One Day" -- published in 1988 but composed over 17 years -- as the new poet laureate's greatest achievement, The Washington Post reported.