The Breakwater Book of Contemporary Newfoundland Poetry

Publisher Marketing: Gathering the strongest poetry published by Newfoundlanders since the death of E. J. Pratt in 1964, The Breakwater Book of Contemporary Newfoundland Poetry features selections from twelve of the province's most impressive poets, including Al Pittman, Tom Dawe, Mary Dalton, John Steffler, Patrick Warner, and Ken Babstock. This groundbreaking anthology, with over forty years of poetry on display, celebrates the rousing and the rebirth of contemporary Newfoundland verse. Review Citations: Quill & Quire 07/01/2013 pg. 40 (EAN 9781550814088, Paperback) Contributor Bio:  Langer, James James Langer is the author of the award-winning poetry collection Gun Dogs (Anansi, 2009). He's edited poetry for The Fiddlehead, Riddle Fence, Goose Lane Editions, and now works as the in-house managing editor of Breakwater Books. Contributor Bio:  Callanan, Mark Mark Callanan is the author of Scarecrow (Killick, 2003) and Gift Horse (Signal Editions, 2011) which was shortlisted for the BMO Winterset Award. He previously edited and helped establish the journal Riddle Fence, and he currently edits for Canadian Notes and Queries. Contributor Bio:  Crummey, Michael Michael Crummey is a poet and storyteller and the author of several critically acclaimed novels. His most recent book, Galore, won the Commonwealth Prize for Canada. He lives in St. John's, Newfoundland. Contributor Bio:  Dalton, Mary Mary Dalton (1950) was born in Lake View, Conception Bay, NL. She was editor of "TickleAce" from 1980 to 1986. The author of two books of poetry, Dalton won the inaugural TickleAce Cabot Award for Poetry in 1998. She teaches in the Department of English at Memorial University. Contributor Bio:  Dawe, Tom Born in Long Pond, Conception Bay, NL, Tom Dawe (1940) is the author of sixteen books. After teaching at rural high schools, Dawe was appointed to the Department of English at Memorial University. He was a founding editor of Breakwater Books, the literary journal "TickleAce", and the folklore journal "The Livyere". A frequent winner of the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts and Letters Awards, Dawe was given a gold medal for visual arts in 1973. Contributor Bio:  Greene, Richard Richard Greene (1961) was born in St. John's, NL. In 1991 he received a PhD from the University of Oxford. He taught for some time at Memorial University and is currently an Assistant Professor of English at Erindale College, University of Toronto. Contributor Bio:  McGrath, Carmelita Carmelita McGrath (1960) was born in Branch, St. Mary's Bay, NL, and now makes her home in St. John's. In 1998 she received the Atlantic Poetry Prize for "To the New World". Her collection of short stories, "Stranger Things Have Happened", won the Writers' Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador Bennington Gate Award. Contributor Bio:  Pittman, Al Al Pittman's writing has been featured in many publications and has been the subject of radio, television and film documentaries. He has given public readings of his work in Canada, the United States and Europe. Among his many literary awards is the Arts Council's Lydia Campbell Award for Creative Writing in 1985, which Pittman was the first to receive, and the Writers' Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador Book Award for Poetry in 2001. Al Pittman was inducted into the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council Hall of Honour in 1999. Al Pittman died in August of 2001 at the age of sixty-one. Contributor Bio:  Sinclair, Sue Sue Sinclair grew up in St. John's, Newfoundland. Her extraordinary poetic powers were first recognized when she won two creative writing awards at University of New Brunswick: the Walker Prize and the Angela Ludvine Memorial Prize. Her first poetry collection, "Secrets of Weather & Hope", was a finalist for the 2002 Gerald Lampert Award, and her second, "Mortal Arguments", was a finalist for the Atlantic Poetry Prize. Her work appears frequently in magazines such as "The Fiddlehead, Canadian Literature, Grain, The New Quarterly", and "The Malahat Review", and in anthologies such as "Coastlines" and "Breathing Fire II". Contributor Bio:  Steffler, John John Steffler (1947) grew up near Thornhill, ON. In 1975, he began teaching at Sir Wilfred Grenfell College in Corner Brook, NL. His novel "The Afterlife of George Cartwright" won the Smithbooks/Books in Canada First Novel Award and was shortlisted for the Governor General's Award and the Commonwealth Prize for best first book in 1992. His other awards include the Thomas Head Raddall Atlantic Fiction Prize, the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council Artist of the Year Award, and the Atlantic Poetry Prize for his most recent collection, "That Night We Were Ravenous". Contributor Bio:  Walsh, Agnes Agnes Walsh (1950) was born and raised in Placentia, NL. She was a co-founder of Neighbourhood Dance Works and has been working in professional theatre for over twenty years. She divides her time between St. John's and Placentia Bay, where she is involved in community cultural development. Her research into the oral history of that area informs her poetry and drama. Contributor Bio:  Warner, Patrick Born in Claremorris, County Mayo, Ireland, Patrick Warner (1963) emigrated to Canada in 1980. He completed a Masters of Library and Information Science degree at the University of Western Ontario. He is the recipient of several Newfoundland and Labrador Arts and Letters Awards for poetry.