The Poems of Basil Bunting, edited by Don Share
I’m a bit obsessed with Bunting long poem Briggflatts, and the copious notes provided by Share allow the reader to dig deeper and deeper into this mesmerizing poem.
Magnetic North – Jenna Butler
These poems are suffused with a tremendous energy of sound as Butler explores firsthand the the effects of global warming on the Arctic’s fragile ecosystem.
Collected Poems – Louis MacNeice
MacNeice has long languished in the shadow of Auden and other poets of the Thirties, but he’s one of my favourites, and a true master of form and technique. Clarity on the surface, and resonances in the depths: his work deserves a wide readership.
The Hideous Hidden – Sylvia Legris
Legris is, for me, unparalleled in her ability to appealingly blend sonic density with arcane scientific investigations of the body and the natural world.
Collected Poems – Michael Donaghy
Don Paterson describes Donaghy’s poems as being akin to holograms: a broken hologram still contains the full image in each piece, and each of Donaghy’s lines encapsulates the whole of the poem. He was a meticulous craftsman who created work that is effortless to read, yet demands to be reread almost immediately to discover the concealed delights.
David Martin works as a literacy instructor in Calgary, Alberta, and as an organizer for the Single Onion Poetry Series. His first collection, Tar Swan (NeWest Press, 2018), was a finalist for the Raymond Souster Award from the League of Canadian Poets and the City of Calgary W. O. Mitchell Book Prize. David’s work has appeared in literary journals across Canada and was awarded the CBC Poetry Prize in 2014.