Catherine Chandler's Poetry Blog

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Book Cover Finalized!



If the file is displaying correctly you'll see a deep ruby color with gold detailing. Kate, the graphic artist at Biblioasis, took these colors from the work of Edward Hopper (my poem, "Edward Hopper's Automat", originally chosen by poet Les Murray to be published in the Australian journal, Quadrant, is the final poem in the book).

Description on back cover:

The second full-length collection from sonneteer and formalist poet Catherine Chandler, Glad and Sorry Seasons brings together new suites of poems—on grief, recovery, the deadly sins, and the virtues of faith, hope, and love—to meditate on those polarities of light and dark, joy and sorrow, that illuminate and cloud our lives by turn. With subjects ranging from Alzheimer’s to Edward Hopper’s Automat, in expertly crafted stanzas and metres, and including translations from Québecois and Latin American poets, Glad and Sorry Seasons is a stunning and learned offering from a poet unmistakably committed to form.

No traditional "blurbs"! Instead, a poem from the book, "Waiting", inspired by a young man who shared with me (and others) the waiting room outside the Intensive Care Unit of Hôpital Notre-Dame in Montreal in the summer of 2012. 

I hope many of you will buy the book (it's available for pre-order now at a special price!) in print or electronic format and come to my readings. I'll keep you posted on the venues, dates and times.

Canada: Order HERE
United States: Order HERE
United Kingdom: Order HERE
Australia: Order HERE






Monday, February 10, 2014

Memories of Clover


Photo by Ann Mah (annmah.net)

My poem, "Vermont Passage" (first published in Mezzo Cammin and included in my first collection, Lines of Flight, Able Muse Press, 2011) has been selected from hundreds of entries for the "Poetry Jumps off the Shelf" project. It will appear on postcards available to houseguests in Wisconsin & Vermont rental cottages.

The sonnet is dedicated to one of the most accomplished poets I know, Deborah Warren. I first met Deborah at a luncheon in Newburyport in 2005. I'd made a remark about the lovely Vermont wildflowers along the highway, whereupon she asked me if I had smelled the clover on the hillsides. The poem is a sort of poetic antiphon, not only to her observation, but also to hope in general.

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Spring Catalog

On pages 14 and 15: Announcement of my new book, Glad and Sorry Seasons, from Biblioasis Press (Windsor, Ontario). Several sample poems as well.

I'll keep you all posted on the reading schedule!