UPEI English professor shortlisted for Atlantic Poetry Award
The Chair of UPEI's English Department, Dr. Brent MacLaine, is on the shortlist of poets whose books have been nominated for the prestigious Atlantic Poetry Prize, to be given out at a gala awards presentation on May 8, during the ATLANTIC INK Writers' Festival.
MacLaine's Shades of Green, published by Charlottetown's Acorn Press, is his third collection of poetry. Whether emerging from the local landscapes of memory or the present-day streetscapes of Manhattan, the poems record the poet's attempt to seize the chromatic complexity of experience.
Also shortlisted for the 12th annual Atlantic Poetry Prize are Breaker by Sue Sinclair (Brick Books) and Sky Atlas by Alan R. Wilson (Fitzhenry & Whiteside).
MacLaine is a Professor of English and a 3M Teaching Fellow at UPEI where he teaches 20th-century literature. His previous volumes include Wind and Root (Vehicule 2000) and These Fields Were Rivers (Goose Lane 2004). He also co-edited Landmarks: An Anthology of New Atlantic Canadian Poetry of the Land (Acorn 2001). He lives with his family in Rice Point where he grew up.
MacLaine will give a public reading from his work on May 6 at 7:30 p.m. along with shortlisted authors Douglas Arthur Brown and Alan R. Wilson. Hosted by the PEI Writers' Guild, the reading will be held at the Confederation Centre Art Gallery. Everyone is welcome.
The ATLANTIC INK Writers' Festival is a week-long fanfare from May 4 to 9, recognizing the 12 finalists for this year's Ann Connor Brimer Children's Literature, Atlantic Poetry, Thomas H. Raddall Fiction and Evelyn Richardson Non-fiction book prizes. The festival includes readings, signings, school appearances, writing workshops, and panel discussions in the four Atlantic provinces. Prince Edward Island plays host to Philip Roy, author of the shortlisted children's book, Submarine Outlaw (Ronsdale Press). He will visit schools from May 4 to 6.
The awards ceremony will be held at Saint Mary's University Sobey Building in the Scotiabank Theatre. Acclaimed Cape Breton writer Alistair MacLeod will deliver ATLANTIC INK's first keynote, 'A Writer's Life: Geography as Inspiration,' as a prelude to four readings by the winners of this year's book prizes.
