In one of her poems Rita Joe writes, I lost my talk/The talk you took away. In another, she claims, And I will relate wonders to my people. The first statement brings us face-to-face with the attempted destruction of Native People and their rich and varied cultures, including their mother tongues. The second affirms the blessings that poems can bring to a particular people and to others who want to listen. What the poets in this anthology bring to the page is, indeed, a series of wonders. Such a gathering of writers and words, to borrow a phrase from Wayne Keon, makes all the stars/cooperate/and come out shining. Lorna Crozier, University of Victoria, winner of the Governor Generals Award for Poetry
This collection shows the breadth of contemporary Native poetry, from the resistance literature of the many poems remembering the murdered Helen Betty Osborne to the playful fishing game of Daniel David Moses; it is an excellent anthology. Terry Goldie, York University, co-editor of An Anthology of Canadian Native Literature in English
Armstrong and Grauer have arranged a collection of works of extraordinary breadth in their thematic treatment of cultural, political, and spiritual subjects. Instructors will value the accompanying biographical information, the substantial selections from each poets work, and the authors prefatory comments, all of which situate this collection as an ideal text for the university classroom. Canadian Literature
