Poet and fiction writer Gillian Wigmore will read at the Sechelt Arts Centre on Saturday, Nov. 14 at 8 p.m. Her most recent books, Grayling, a novella, and Orient, featuring three long poems, build upon a remarkable reputation established with two earlier poetry collections. Her first book, soft geography, won the ReLit Award in 2008 and was a finalist for the Dorothy Livesay Award (BC Book Prize).
Grayling is destined to become a Canadian classic; simultaneously down-to-earth and mythic, it takes a personal and geographic quest compellingly into our contemporary north. Annabel Lyon calls it, “a work of profound Canadiana – as fast and rough and bright and bracing as the Dease River itself.” Bill Gaston agrees: “Packing quiet wisdom and a poet’s eye, Grayling takes us on a spellbinding journey through a grim and gorgeous north country. Haunting, surprising, and unforgettable.”
M. Travis Lane writes of Orient that it, “leaps, sings, burrows down, and orients the reader within its rich ecosystem. The appeal of these poems lies partly in their blend of humility (the open-minded approach), in their force (the taut style, the original vision) and in an astonishing boldness. Wigmore is a ‘poet of place’ in the best sense.”
This not-to-be-missed event wraps up the fall season of literary readings at the Arts Centre. Sponsored by the Canada Council and the Sunshine Coast Art Council, admission is by donation. Doors open at 7:30 p.m.
