A sketch of Louise Gluck, a contemporary poet from the US, who was awarded this year's Nobel Prize in Literature. [Photo/zj.zjol.com.cn]

Louise Gluck, a contemporary poet from the US, was awarded this year's Nobel Prize in Literature on Oct 8. The first letter issued by her authorizing the translation of her poems into Chinese is still preserved in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province.

In the 1990s, Cai Tianxin, a well-known poet and mathematician in Hangzhou, started composing an anthology of modern poems. He expressed an intention to include Gluck's poems in the collection in a letter to her during Cai's visit to the US in 1993.

In the letter, Cai expressed hope that Gluck would authorize the inclusion of her poem in the anthology. Cai recalled that Gluck enthusiastically agreed and didn't even demand royalties.

"The letter in reply is still preserved in a drawer in my home," said Cai.

The anthology 100 Modern Poems, composed by Cai, has sold well and received a recommendation from Hangzhou education authorities. 

The book has become required reading for students at the Hangzhou Foreign Languages School and the Hangzhou No 2 High School.