Urban Snow

Dennis Denisoff teaches English at McGill University and is the author
of Dog Years.

George Bowering’s latest collection of poetry evokes a sense of
vitality, honesty, and faith in humanity. It also offers a more
sensitive, reflective side of Bowering than was apparent in most of his
previous works.

This is not to say that the poet’s unique, wry humor is absent from
this collection. “Late Goddess” reads, in it entirety, “Isis /
Isntisnt.” Such seemingly flippant jokes, which are scattered
throughout the collection, are for the most part integral to the
volume’s central themes. A number of the poems gain from the
reader’s familiarity with the Canadian literary community. References
are made to John Newlove, Malcolm Lowry, Hugh MacLennan, Smaro
Kamboureli, and David McFadden, among others. It isn’t necessary,
however, to know Bowering’s relation to the variously cited literary
associations and individuals to appreciate these emotionally resonant
poems.