Momentary Dark - Softcover
Margaret Avison has long been considered one of Canada’s most respected writers, and in a career that now spans more than forty years, she continues to work at the height of her powers. In this brilliant collection of new poems, Avison writes of our home on this “little rollicking orb,” exhilaratingly situated in the immensity of space, and of life in and out of phase with the divine, the measure of all. Deep, subtle, and wide thinking is couched in a crystalline style, and nobody makes taut sentences more flush with meaning. Momentary Dark is a celebration of the world, but not without edge and a quiet challenge to care for a damaged earth and all its citizens equally, including a veritable populace of city trees graciously and beautifully linking the earth and the sky.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
About the Author:
Margaret Avison’s work has, over the course of a career spanning more than forty years, won numerous awards, including two Governor General’s Awards and, for Concrete and Wild Carrot, the Griffin Poetry Prize. Her books of poetry include Always Now: The Collected Poems and, most recently, Momentary Dark. She holds three honorary doctorates and is an Officer of the Order of Canada. Margaret Avison died in July 2007, in Toronto
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.:
POLITICAL PLOY PERHAPS
Is
Humpty Dumpty a
was?
His all-apartity
awash
in royal horses?
(as likely to squash
that goggle-eyed face
in the grass as
to reass-
emble a torso from as
many bits as hash)?
Perhaps poor Humpty had
to tumble so we’d see
all the pieces we need
to make democracy.
A Word about the Poem by Margaret Avison
Three strands came together suddenly to release this poem: remembering Iona and Peter Opies’ disclosure, probably in The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren, of a political dimension in nursery rhymes; recalling an illustration of Humpty Dumpty in a child’s book, his pudginess and protruding eyes, which merged with newspaper photographs of public figures; the feel in the fingers of the name “Humpty Dumpty,” wood carved in an irregularly rounded shape.
In a poem, the physical feel of a word-counter matters more than its meaning (in this instance, some significant person’s “fall” from power after perceived indecisiveness, i.e. “sat on a wall”).
Is
Humpty Dumpty a
was?
His all-apartity
awash
in royal horses?
(as likely to squash
that goggle-eyed face
in the grass as
to reass-
emble a torso from as
many bits as hash)?
Perhaps poor Humpty had
to tumble so we’d see
all the pieces we need
to make democracy.
A Word about the Poem by Margaret Avison
Three strands came together suddenly to release this poem: remembering Iona and Peter Opies’ disclosure, probably in The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren, of a political dimension in nursery rhymes; recalling an illustration of Humpty Dumpty in a child’s book, his pudginess and protruding eyes, which merged with newspaper photographs of public figures; the feel in the fingers of the name “Humpty Dumpty,” wood carved in an irregularly rounded shape.
In a poem, the physical feel of a word-counter matters more than its meaning (in this instance, some significant person’s “fall” from power after perceived indecisiveness, i.e. “sat on a wall”).
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherMcClelland & Stewart
- Publication date2006
- ISBN 10 0771008872
- ISBN 13 9780771008870
- BindingPaperback
- Edition number1
- Number of pages91
- Rating
Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace
Momentary Dark (Inscribed Copy)
Published by
McClelland & Stewart
(2006)
ISBN 10: 0771008872
ISBN 13: 9780771008870
Used
Soft cover
First Edition
Signed
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Soft cover. Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. About the book: Softcover. First Printing. Inscribed by poet on title page. This was the Ms. Avison's last published book during her lifetime. Book is in very good plus condition with mild cornerwear. Additional photos available upon request. We're not satisfied unless you are. Inscribed by Author(s). Seller Inventory # 000456
Buy Used
US$ 60.73
Convert currency