Point to Point

Sheila Martindale is poetry editor of Canadian Author and Bookman and
the author of No Greater Love.

To say that these are nature poems would be to understate the case.
True, many of them explore the natural world, specifically that of
Vancouver Island, but Munro goes much deeper than the observation of
plant life. Somehow she relates the landscape to the human condition:
“I pause to see their delicate green dressing / of April’s raw
flank—as if a blade had scraped the scales off winter, then wrapped
its ache / in seaweed” (from “Salmonberries”).

This poet also writes about human relationships—in particular about
her relationship with her father, whom she clearly loved, and whom she
mourned deeply at his death. He was a huge influence in her life, and
the poems are peppered with his words of wisdom. However, there is
another side to this larger-than-life figure, one of inflexibility,
power, and control: “No cats in my house” and “No daughter of mine
will embrace a foreign tongue” are indicative of his rigid attitude.

These are accessible poems, written with clarity and grace.