Having a first book prize and an international prize at the same event makes for a bizarre, intimidating experience. Could have been easier with some fellow Canadians who are not yet Margaret Atwood.
Curious how these discussions rarely mention the Canadian First Book Prize, which did not exist previously. As a recipient I have complicated feelings about it.
Three books of poetry propped up on a cabinet. From left to right the books are Sublunary by Lisa Richter, Evacuations by Kevin Irie, Nighthawks by Lisa Martin.
Happy Poetry Month! All @ualbertapress.bsky.social poetry is 30% for April - use code iP26 at checkout.
ualbertapress.ca/search/?cate...
Here are our gorgeous new volumes:
"The witch is a woman who collages herself out of other women." ... New review of Andrea Rexilius' hybrid poetry collection Seance of the Bees
reviewsofbooksigotforfreeorcheap.substack.com/p/andrea-rex...
#booksky
"Goodbye, Super A ... it seems to me you lived your life like a candle in the wind.
The bakery section flooded when the roof fell in.
I would have liked your yogurt, but it had just expired.
Your freezers burned out long before your lunch meat ever did."
♡... I sing this tribute with love ...♡
new from above/ground press: Wilkins, Maloukis, van Vliet, Cone/Lipschutz, Bach, Sparrow, Macdonald, Kennedy, Sparling, Burgoyne, Wells, Levy + Sharp, Touch the Donkey #48 + a bilingual anthol eds. O'Meara/Sylvain,
robmclennan.blogspot.com/2026/03/new-...
new from above/ground press:
, Wilkins, Maloukis, van Vliet, Cone/Lipschutz, Bach, Sparrow, Macdonald, Kennedy, Sparling, Burgoyne, Wells, Levy + Sharp, + a bilingual anthol eds. O'Meara/Sylvain, / @yukondawn.bsky.social @noahsparrow.bsky.social ;
abovegroundpress.substack.com/p/new-from-a...
in fairness, no, Vera Brittain's attempt to marry an acquaintance blinded in WWI prior to his untimely death notwithstanding
this review is hands-down the best thing I've read in a week where I also read multiple great books, some of them Penguin Classics
yes we have literally one kind of bat in the Yukon (maybe a second one that's had a few unconfirmed sightings) and yet I too now require this guide
"A really pronounced style might feel in the way, but I think that science fiction is such a capacious genre that it has space for a lot of experimentation."
Let's talk more about words! Thanks to @ndbooks.bsky.social and @wolsakandwynn.bsky.social for work that sparks these sorts of conversation.
I had such a blast chatting with Dan and Paul. Please give it a listen, or check out the transcript if audio is not your jam
and to cap off the Black History Month book posts, this controversial classic
another from Sean's library. Tough going for me, but if you're equipped to comprehend things like "its primary intertextual relations are with politico-ideological discourses and forms of praxis" then it's a solid read.
a banger, as the cover would imply
Before "James" and "The Trees", Percival Everett had already published a lot of books, and some of them are pretty out there (in the best way)
total-ly recommend
Nigerian-Albertan poetry
I don't have my letter because the mail takes a bit longer to get here but like my fellow authors I too am thankful for libraries, library users, and the program that pays authors for thier books being in libraries
I wish @fillingstation.bsky.social would assess my last submission so that I could submit all this new stuff to @fillingstation.bsky.social
situating dub poetry within the avant garde
some above/ground press author activity: Christina Wells, Eileen Myles, Gary Barwin, Larry Sawyer, Misha Solomon + Dawn Macdonald, / @garybarwin.bsky.social @mishasolomon.bsky.social ;
abovegroundpress.blogspot.com/2026/02/some...
Valerie Mason-John responds to James Baldwin
To: Poplar From: Clover Subject: Leaf Rust “Leaf Rust” by Dawn Macdonald in -ette Illustration of clover plant
Two deep-rooted charmers on plant communication (yes, there are emails!) by @yukondawn.bsky.social :
“Leaf Rust” and “Lichen on Moss.”
Read them in our Winter issue
www.ettereview.com/winter2026/m...
Dawn won the 2025 Canadian First Book Prize for her poetry collection, Northerny
massive biography of this pioneering data scientist and sci-fi writer
super problematic but VERY EXCITING 1930s newspaper serials about a megalomaniacal mastermind out of Harlem who plots to take over the world
Black existentialist thought
continuing with the "education" theme for today's Black History book recommendation
Really fine review to start the week from @yukondawn.bsky.social on CF Ramuz, whose Into The Sun has just been reissued by @ndbooks.bsky.social, in a translation by Olivia Baes and Emma Ramadan.
“Ramuz’s sentences have the beauty of a beam of sunlight through swirling dust.”
-ette issue 7 cover with writers names and snow graphics
Issue 7 is now live! With new work by:
Lauren Camp
Theodore Heil
Marc Kaufman
@yukondawn.bsky.social
@nataliemarino.bsky.social
Adam McOmber
www.ettereview.com/winter2026/