Vera Manuel devoted her life to encouraging others to free ourselves through the use of our personal voices. Telling the truth is disarming, speaking your truth is a generous and healing gift.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Vera's portrait + poem

Vera Manuel is one of the authors included in Barry Peterson's 111 West Coast Literary Portraits, forthcoming from Mother Tongue Publishing. A photographic portrait of each author, short bio sketch and a sample of their work, is presented for each, in an 8 x 10, 264 page picture book.

Emalene and I were given a sneak peek of the portrait of Vera, and helped to select the poem featured... which was a bit of a story in itself.  We submitted an excerpt from one of Vera's most popular poems, "Justice." This ended up not fitting on the page... 250 words of prose might have, but not 250 words presented in several short line-length poetry stanzas.

Rather than excerpting the excerpt, and perhaps misrepresenting the poem (which is after all a whole and wholesome thing at it's complete length), another poem was selected and submitted, in a completely different mood~

"Spring Fever."

We haven't seen the full book as yet, but there's an Early Bird sale on, so, just thought i'd let you know!

~
“Portraits are not taken—they are given” 
~ John Reeves, Photographer

Writers in the book:

Caroline Adderson, Taiaiake Alfred, Colin Angus, Julie Angus, Chris Arnett, Joanne Arnott, Jean Barman, Gurjinder Basran, Joanne Bealy, Thomas R. Berger, bill bissett, Arthur Black, Robin Blaser, George Bowering, Marilyn Bowering, Kate Braid, Brian Brett, Barry Broadfoot, Anne Cameron, Trevor Carolan, Norma Charles, Jim Christy, Marie Clements, Wayde Compton, Claudia Cornwall, Lorna Crozier, William Deverell, Hadani Ditmars, Phinder Dulai, Marilyn Dumont, Daniela Elza, M.A.C. Farrant, Mona Fertig, George Fetherling, Patrick Friesen, Maxine Gadd, Charlotte Gill, Terry Glavin, Kim Goldberg, Katherine Gordon, Shirley Graham, R.W.Gray, Amanda Hale, Keith Harrison, Diana Hayes, Robert Hilles, Jack Hodgins, Pauline Holdstock, Irene Howard, Edith Iglauer, Rick James, Sandi Johnson, Eve Joseph, Des Kennedy, W.P. Kinsella, Theresa Kishkan, Joy Kogawa, Larissa Lai, Tim Lander, Patrick Lane, Evelyn Lau, Peter Levitt, Pearl Luke, Derek Lundy,Vera Manuel, Daphne Marlatt, George McWhirter, Roy Miki, Alice Munro, Sheila Munro, Susan Musgrave, Peter Newman, Eric Nicol, Bud Osborn, Kathy Page, P.K. Page, Morris Panych, John Pass, Stan Persky, Al Purdy, Meredith Quartermain, Jamie Reid, Stephen Reid, Bill Richardson, Lisa Robertson, Ajmer Rode, Linda Rogers, Joe Rosenblatt, Jane Rule, Mairuth Sarsfield, Andreas Schroeder, Gregory Scofield, Goh Poh Seng, Doris Shadbolt, George Stanley, Robert Strandquist, Peter Such, George Szanto, Timothy Taylor, Sharon Thesen, Peter Trower, Alan Twigg, Fred Wah, Betsy Warland, David Watmough, Phyllis Webb, Evelyn C. White, Howard White, Paula Wild, Rita Wong, Caroline Woodward, Ronald Wright, Rachel Wyatt, Max Wyman, Patricia Young.

More about the book/how to order:
 Mother Tongue/111 West Coast Literary Portraits