The Persnickety Reader

…my friend, Rhonda Douglas.

Congratulations, Rhonda! Read the press release here.

Here’s the first insallment of a new feature. On the last day of each month, I’ll post a review of a book I’ve read and enjoyed that month. Nothing too fancy, just an overview and some thoughts. Enjoy (and participate!).

The Eight Stages of Translation by Robert Bly. Boston: Rowan Tree Press, 1983. 107 pages.

I’ve been translating some French poetry lately, starting in February, so I have been eager to read other poets’ accounts of process. This book is by far the best I’ve come across so far (although if readers have any additional suggestions, please leave them in the comments). Robert Bly is one of the best poets (American or otherwise) writing today. This book was straightforward, informative and filled with the practicalities of the intricate art of translating. Also, being more than 20 years old, the book is still just as relevant.

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This is one of four tomatoe plants not in our garden. They get more sun here. I counted 33 tomatoes already.

By next year, us lucky Albertans will be able to hoist mugs of mead, a drink the Beowulf poet probably sipped on as he composed his epic (and perhaps the reason he forgot to sign his name).

Alberta beekeepers can now make mead, a honey wine that is the oldest known alcoholic drink. The wine was approved last week for production and sale in Alberta after a year of lobbying by the province’s honey industry. The Alberta Gaming and Liquor Board is allowing farmers to get a cottage winery licence to produce and sell mead.

What’s taken so long?

Read the history of mead here.

Mmmmmm… mead.

On Trans Fats.

The amount of trans fats in the processed foods that Canadians eat should be limited, a federal task force recommended Wednesday.

On Atlas Man. (Brought to you here yesterday.)

Gerald Beaulieu plans to rebuild his sculpture called Atlas Man, which was damaged over the weekend. The sculpture was found Monday morning, tipped over with both his hands broken off, in Fredericton’s Garrison District.

(from CBC)

Sherry’s pregnant belly. Picture taken yesterday.

And here’s an article about Trans Fats. They should be banned.

Under Canadian law, products can be considered free of trans fats if they contain no more than 0.5 grams of trans fats per serving.

Isn’t that a bit misleading?

Yesterday, I finally heard officially from Goose Lane Editions. Ross Leckie had informed me by phone in April when I was in Fredericton that GLE wasn’t taking my book, and said I should hear from Sue Sinclair soon if I hadn’t already. Well, she finally e-mailed me yesterday and she didn’t give me much to work with. She said I was reaching for something and in fact reached it in several poems. So, not very much useful comments. Not that I expect loads of comments. Just that if you’re waiting months and months and months, at least have some concrete comments. Oh well.

The kicker was when I checked the mail at noon, my rejection from Wolsak & Wynn was there. It was a page-long very nice and encouraging rejection. (The publisher even asked me to send it again next January if it wasn’t taken elsewhere.) So now I’m faced with where to send next. I have a shortlist of places I’m considering: Signal, McGill-Queens, Frontenac, and Anansi. I might chop a few older poems out and put a few newer ones in.

Thanks to John and Dave for some helpful comments.

- Newfoundland & Labrador. A smart gull.

- Alberta. More Ralph Bucks? I wish the Alberta Government would figure out how to spend wisely. Although we could really use $400 each.

- New Brunswick. Atlas Man Shattered.

I made the trek into Edmonton today to take care of a half-dozen details. The big news is I have a suit now for the wedding. And I picked up a father’s day gift from Sherry, who said I could buy a book of my choosing. My choice: Czeslaw Milosz’s Selected Poems 1931-2004. I’m looking forward to reading it right after I’m done reviewing Jan Conn’s Jaguar Rain: The Margaret Mee Poems for Northern Poetry Review.

In other news, I’m planning on some upcoming changes here at IanLeTourneau.ca. Once a month, look for a featured review, to be published here on the last day of each month. I’m working on a review of Eight Stages of Translation by Robert Bly right now. Nothing too fancy: just an overview and some thoughts. And I want people to come back everyday so one way to lure them is some original content. I’m going to post a picture of the day everyday: that’ll be pretty easy because every day I see something interesting in my back yard–lots of deer, all kinds of birds, and even a wolf one day. The only hitch is that I need a digital camera. We’re going to buy one soon, so I hope that feature comes on-line soon. Look for some changes (and original content) soon!

By the way, please leave a message to let me know your reading.