National Network for Equitable Library Service

In this second installation of the Overhead Series, Lucy Haché once again transports the reader with intimate revelations on identity by exploring both her personal and ancestral relationship to the sky and stars. Hache’s prose is extraordinary in its combination of self awareness yet unselfconscious honesty and skillful restraint, creating a sense of connection under the vastness of the stars above. Masterfully illustrated by artist Michael Joyal, his evocative astronomic drawings contribute to the overall sensory and transcendent experience.

During the heatwave of July 2017, Ariel Gordon spent two days sitting on the patio of downtown Winnipeg’s Tallest Poppy, writing snippets of poems which she hung from the boulevard tree using paper and string. Passersby were invited to TreeTalk too — their secrets / one-liners / meditations / haiku were also hung from the tree. By the end of the weekend, the elm had a second temporary canopy of leaves: 234 poems, 111 written by Gordon, 107 written by passersby, and 16 from other sources.

The Muse Sings and the poet sings songs of love and longing from states of joy, self-doubt, vexation, curiosity, affection, observation, mock-indignation… The poems speak for themselves and sometimes “they talk all at once.” In seductive acts of language itself, they invoke and embrace the Muses as much as they do the writers who would become muses, from ancient Homer and Shakespeare to poets of contemporary time. These poems are the seasoned work of a trickster poet in his prime with a crow’s eye trained on the world.

In this brave first book, Lucy Haché transports the reader with intimate revelations on self-awareness and identity by exploring both her personal and ancestral relationship to the sea, forest and sky. Through skilled restraint and beautifully astute description, Haché‘s prose reaches past her own contemplation to connect us all. Masterfully illustrated by artist Michael Joyal, his stunning and meteorologically accurate cloud drawings contribute to the overall sensory and transcendent experience.

A gibbous moon arrives in shadow and light. First at waxing then at waning, two moons in one cycle just shy of full. Poet Dennis Cooley’s eloquent words merge with photographer/composer Michael Matthews’ decadent abstract photographs. These two celebrated artists draw connections and parallels to each other’s masterful art forms, tying the two together seamlessly. The antecedent and subsequent illuminate the night sky with their dance; the shadows and the light taking turns at showing us the way through the darkness.

Miraculous Sickness deals with society’s views and treatment of schizophrenia from ancient times to modern day. From the cure for demon possession to the recovery model, Miraculous Sickness sheds light on a subject matter still shrouded in misconceptions and myth. In this collection of poetry, we get a sense how our approach to dealing with mental illness and those affected has evolved, yet how far we have yet to go. Skillfully wrought poems that detail her own lived experience, the poet expounds upon difficult terrain with careful footing so as to create a dialogue for all to consider.

With poems that both calm and awaken, Mary Barnes brings her Ojibwe roots to the fore and elegantly coaxes out the seemingly quiet world we often take for granted in What Fox Knew. In this masterful first collection, Barnes reveals this world anew, with tempered grace.

The blue skies of childhood exist in the warmest of our memories, but what chases us all through the rest of our lives are the storm clouds. This is the premise of Children Shouldn’t Use Knives, a harrowing but exhilarating examination of life before adolescence by Canadian poet Shirley Camia. In a series of razor-sharp sketches, Camia’s piercing observations are offered as a perfectly balanced counter-weight to the sing-song melody of innocence.

A bilingual collection of renga poetry by two of Canada’s most celebrated poets in English and in French, each writing in his respective language in response to the other. A project of discourse itself that explores Novalis’ definition of poetry as “the truly absolute real.” Léveillé and Blodgett share an unprecedented dialogue that possesses both paradox and complete clarity of word. Ce recueil est un échange de poésie dans le style renga entre deux poètes canadiens réputés, chacun correspondant dans sa propre langue.

Over the course of a lifetime, we all experience catch-of-breath moments that stir exquisite awareness of life’s transience. Such fleeting moments we share with poet Christian McPherson and his space-suited avatar negotiating bumpy terrain. In this collection the meandering, often self-deprecating poet considers and records moments of truth and insight common to us all as he registers his joys and regrets, and raises rants in postured outrage. A refreshing and often humorous honesty prevails.