Don McKay is een Canadese dichter wiens werk zich vaak verdiept in de diepten van de natuur en het menselijk bestaan. Zijn poëtische taal is precies en klankrijk, en verkent de relatie tussen waarneming en werkelijkheid. McKay's schrijven wordt gekenmerkt door intellectuele diepgang en een uniek perspectief op de wereld om ons heen.
Petra's passion for rocks takes an unexpected turn when she receives a special rock collection from her parents. As she examines each sample, she begins to notice a peculiar connection, especially with one rock that seems to wink at her. This intriguing bond leads Petra on a journey of discovery, revealing a magical relationship with her beloved rocks that transcends her initial excitement.
"[McKay's] exuberantly musical and shrewd poems are ecological in the fullest sense of the word: they seek to elucidate our relationships with our fragile dwelling places both on the earth and in our own skins." --New York Times Book Review E.J. Pratt Family Poetry Award, Winner An extraordinary collection of poems from Griffin Poetry Prize winner Don McKay. Old joke: “What’s the difference between a lurch and a dance step?” “I don’t know.” “I didn’t think so. Let’s sit down.” These poems are what happens when you stay out on the dance floor instead, dancing the staggers. The full moon rises from the ocean and you lurch with astonishment that we live on a rocky sphere whirling in space. Or the bird in your hand—a pipit or a storm petrel—conveys the exquisite frailty of existence. And there’s the complex of lurches as we contemplate our complicity in the sixth mass extinction. Throughout Lurch, language dances its ardent incompetence as a translator of “the profane wonders of the wilderness,” whether manifest as Balsam Fir, Catbirds, the extinct Eskimo Curlew, or the ever-present Cosmic Microwave Background. What is the difference between a love song and an elegy? We live between eroding raindrops and accelerating clocks. The piano lifts its lid to show its wire-and-hammer heart.
Renowned for its wit and emotional depth, Don McKay's poetry captivates with its musicality and vernacular style. A two-time winner of the Governor General's Award for Poetry, he has garnered national acclaim and was a finalist for the internationally recognized Griffin Poetry Prize for his latest work. McKay's unique voice and lyrical prowess make his poetry a significant contribution to contemporary literature.
Exploring the intersection of poetry and landscape, this collection delves into the depths of geologic time while reflecting on natural elements like marble and quartz. The poet observes the melodies of birds and the noise of industrialization, seeking to bridge the gap between language and the complexities of living on Earth. Through these verses, themes of tension and wonder emerge, revealing both the challenges and the beauty found in the struggle to articulate our relationship with the planet.
Multi-award-winning poet Don McKay returns with a startling collection of new poems, his first since his Griffin Poetry Prize winning book, Strike/SlipDon McKay is known, among other things, as Canada's foremost poet of the natural world. Readers have come to expect a playful extravagance in his poetry. Most recently, he has opened himself to the mysteries of geologic wonder. "Who needs ghosts when matter /nonchalantly haunts us," he writes. In his new book, perhaps his most stunning yet, it's fossils and deep time that provide the awe. The landscape of Newfoundland has taken his linguistic virtuosity even further, sharpened his wit, and given him a lyric energy that sometimes feels as if he's lifting the planet into song.