Some books by women who write interesting poems about nature...

I've just picked up a copy of Radial Symmetry by Katherine Larson (Yale University Press, 2011). It's the winner of this year's Kate Tufts Discovery Award and it was selected for the Yale Younger Poets Series by Louise Glück. It's a tremendous book, worthy of the honours it has received. I'm enjoying it, and it puts me in mind of some other poets, all women, who also write marvellously about the natural world, and I would like to share some of their books with you. This isn't meant to be an exhaustive reading list, but these are book that I have enjoyed, and they all seem to compliment one another. Let these be recommendations for anyone who has enjoyed at least one of these titles; if you liked one, then I'm sure the others will interest you, as well.

A Page from the Wonders of Life on Earth by Stephanie Bolster (Brick Books, 2011).

Winterkill by Catherine Graham (Insomniac Press, 2010). 

Inseminating the Elephant by Lucia Perillo (Copper Canyon Press, 2009).

Red Nest by Gillian Jerome (Nightwood Editions, 2009).

Twigs & Knucklebones by Sarah Lindsay (Copper Canyon Press, 2008).

Spectral Waves by Madeleine DeFrees (Copper Canyon Press, 2006).

Woods etc. by Alice Oswald (Faber and Faber, 2005). 

Dream Work by Mary Oliver (Atlantic Monthly Press, 1986). 

Selected Poems by Amy Clampitt (Alfred A, Knopf, 2010).

Who would you add to this list?

Chris Banks talks about his book Winter Cranes

Chris Banks is well on his way to being Canada's premier meditative poet, and his Winter Cranes was one of my favourite books of poetry published in Canada in 2011. In a "One Question Interview" with Alex Boyd, Banks discusses the ideas and motivations behind his quiet, well-crafted poems. Here is a sample:

... a problem arises when we pay too much attention to the inner chatter of the mind, it can lead to self-seeking and isolation from other people. Thankfully poetry has taught me to mind the gap. My imagination looks for resemblances and correspondences and suddenly a connection between what is happening in my mind and what is on the outside is satisfied for a moment, and there is a feeling of transcendence.

Read the whole piece here.

Some of My Favourite Canadian Poetry Books of 2011

A top ten of sorts. In alphabetical order by title:

Campfire Radio Rhapsody by Robert Earl Stewart (Mansfield Press).

Earworm by Nick Thran (Nightwood Editions).

Folk by Jacob McArthur Mooney (McClelland & Stewart).

Gift Horse by Mark Calanan (Signal Poetry/Vehicule). 

L'il Bastard by David McGimpsey (Coach House Books).

Methodist Hatchet by Ken Babstock (House of Anansi Press).

Post-Apothecary by Sandra Ridley (Pedlar Press).

Rebuild by Sachiko Murakami (Talonbooks). 

The Shining Material by Aisha Sasha John (BookThug).

Winter Cranes by Chris Banks (ECW Press).


Of course, to avoid any conflict, this list excludes any books for which I was the editor, all of which have my total recommendation. These books are: Grunt of the Minotaur by Robin Richardson, Love Figures by Sam Cheuk, and Dance, Monster! by Stan Rogal. 

Now, these lists are always somewhat arbitrary, and if pressed on another day, in another mood, I might have made an argument for other books; Gabe Foreman, Linda Besner, Helen Guri, Phil Hall, Leigh Nash, Matt Rader, Leigh Kotsilidis and many other people published books in the last 12 months that I absolutely loved. 2011 was one of the strongest years for Canadian Poetry in a long time, with so many wonderful books it is impossible for short lists to do them all justice.

I'm looking forward to 2012, with more great Canadian poetry books on the way!

A round-up of this year's Governor General's Award shortlist for poetry.

Phil Hall reading from Killdeer in Ottawa.

I've written about this year's shortlist for the Governor General's Award in poetry. Here's a sample:

In Canada, the announcement of a poetry award short list is always a cause for celebration. And, invariably, it is also a cause for complaint. We poets, you see, are notoriously hard to please. Some of us will be excited about the nominees, either because we love their work or because they are our friends, while others will be disappointed that another great poet has been ignored or that one of our enemies has managed to sneak onto the short list again. Our jubilation is only matched by our chagrin; we are supposed to be passionate, after all, and our tempers flare so high because, as we frequently tell ourselves, the stakes are so low....

Read the rest of it here.

I will be reading the poems of Al Purdy at a fundraiser for the A-Frame Trust featuring Margaret Atwood

Tickets are still available for a November 23 fundraiser for the Al Purdy A-Frame Trust, a non-profit organization whose aim is to preserve the literary and architectural heritage of the house built by poet Al Purdy in Ameliasburgh, Ontario.

The fundraiser will feature Canadian literary icon Margaret Atwood, who will give a presentation titled “Bulldozing the Mind: The Assault on Cultural and Rural Heritage. ” The presentation at the Regent Theatre in Picton, Ontario, will be followed by a reception with food and wine.

I will also be taking part in the event, reading the poems of Al Purdy.

Tickets are on sale at the Regent Theatre box office in Picton. They cost $40 for the presentation alone, or $65 for the presentation and reception. For more information, click here.

As some of you know, I was the editor of The Al Purdy A-Frame Anthology, a book of poems and remembrances (which included an original cartoon by Margaret Atwood) intended to raise funds and awareness for the Trust. If you would like to buy a copy of the anthology, you can order one from Harbour Publishing here.

For more information about The Al Purdy A-Frame Trust, or to make a donation, please visit www.alpurdy.ca.

Jacob McArthur Mooney on the shortlist for the Dylan Thomas Prize

The Dylan Thomas Prize is the world's largest annual literary prize (£30,000) for young writers (i.e. under 30). The shortlist was announced today, and it includes Canada's own Jacob McArthur Mooney, author of Folk (M&S, 2011).

Mooney is one of Canada's best young poets, and one of my personal favourites. It's great to see him getting international recognition for his excellent work!

Here's the entire 2011 Dylan Thomas Prize shortlist:

• The Meeting Point by Lucy Caldwell, Faber
• The Evolution of Bruno Littlemore by Benjamin Hale, Atlantic Books
• Folk by Jacob McArthur Mooney, McClelland & Stewart
• The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht, Orion
• My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece by Annabel Pitcher, Orion

Read the press release here.

Coverage by CBC here. 

And coverage by BBC News here.

The Insomniac Press Fall Launch Party is Monday, October 24

WHEN: Monday, October 24, 7pm - 11pm. 

 

WHERE: The Dora Keogh Irish Pub, 141 Danforth Avenue, Toronto, Ontario.

On Monday, October 24, Insomniac Press will be launching five new literary titles at the Dora Keogh Irish Pub in Toronto, including Robin Richardson's debut poetry collection Grunt of the Minotaur.

Poet, playwright and novelist Stan Rogal, releases Bloodline, a mystery novel. Insomniac Press published Stan's Dance, Monster! Fifty Selected Poems earlier this year. 

Also launching are Jamie Popowich's debut story collection Metraville, Donna Bailey Nurse's latest book of criticism What's a Black Critic to Do II, and the re-release of Karen X. Tulchinsky's celebrated novel Love Ruins Everything.


RSVP: FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE

Visit Insomniac Press

Visit Dora Keogh

Tomas Tranströmer internet round-up

Tomas Tranströmer has won this year's Nobel Prize for literature. For those who may not be aware of his work, here is a round up of 47 of his poems available on the internet, and some recommended further reading.


POEMS

• From The Nobel Prize website: 

Allegro

The Half-Finished Heaven

Under Pressure

Open and Closed Spaces

The Nightingale in Badelunda

 

• From The Academy of American Poets website: 

After a Death
Outskirts

• From The Poetry Foundation website: 

National Insecurity
November in the Former DDR
The Indoors Is Endless

• From The Guardian newspaper website: 

Alone
(audio version)
Tracks

• From Blackbird, an online journal of literature and the arts: 

18 poems from The Sorrow Gondola translated by Patty Crane, with Swedish originals.

• From Brick Magazine's website:
  

Breathing Room

• From Google Books: 

16 poems from The Great Enigma: New Collected Poems translated by Robin Fulton
(Note: "Baltics", a long poem, is incomplete.)




FURTHER READING 

• Receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from The Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry.

Text and Video

• An Essay on The Sorrow Gondola

by David Wojan


POETRY IN ENGLISH TRANSLATION

• The Great Enigma: New Collected Poems, translated by Robin Fulton.

• The Half-Finished Heaven: Best Poems of Tomas Tranströmer, translated by Robert Bly.

• The Deleted World, versions by Robin Robertson.