7 to 5
Michael Meagher
Gaspereau Press

Odes to toothed tools, jagged pallets, creaking barns, rope-burned hands, heavy muscles, gunned staples, sunburnt-flaked shoulders, calluses, blisters, wheelbarrows, grease, loneliness, fresh fertilizer, bodies broken together. Poetry for anyone who knows work. 

Problematica
George Murray
ECW Press

Murray resists branding himself, sticking instead to writing what he loves. In these collected works spanning 25 years, the diversity of form and content is stunning, ranging from pithy aphorisms to lengthy metaphysical and philosophical investigations. We’re invited along to wonder as we wander, guided by one of the most exploratory minds in Canadian poetry. 

Romantic
Mark Callanan
Biblioasis

Mark Callanan’s publicist calls this collection “an elegant blend of the modern and medieval.” She’s absolutely correct. The poet draws on ancient symbolism to critique western culture. But he is also bold himself to explore himself, his own feelings on a dazzling array of contemporary issues, personal and political.