Saturday 11 April 2009

My Griffin Prize Round-up in the Globe and Mail

In today's Globe and Mail, I review the three Canadian books nominated for this year's Griffin Poetry Prize. Here are a few words from the review:


Crabwise to the Hounds, by Jeramy Dodds, Coach House, 70 pages, $16.95

...his poems resonate physically with cunningly crafted language while they successfully amuse the intellect. He balances form, content, entertainment and ingenuity without giving any indication that any ingredient is more or less important than the others.


Revolver, by Kevin Connolly, Anansi, 82 pages, $18.95

What astounds the reader is the virtuosity with which Connolly wields all the poetic tools at his disposal. And this artistic multiplicity is not some elaborate masquerade. Connolly isn't pretending to be 45 different kinds of poet. Here, he is 45 different kinds of poet, and each is the authentic Kevin Connolly.


The Sentinel, by A.F. Moritz, Anansi, 88 pages, $18.95


There is something reassuring in art of this calibre; it reminds us how things matter. Moritz's voice is unmistakable. His readers, his admiring peers and his reviewers have long felt this, but it has become so obvious that it must finally be said: A.F. Moritz is one of the true master poets of his generation.

Read the entire review here.

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