Fiddlehead Gold: 50 Years of «The Fiddlehead» Magazine

Julie Rak teaches English at McMaster University.

This anthology of poetry and short stories that first appeared in The
Fiddlehead—one of Canada’s longest-running literary magazines which
is now celebrating its 50th year—makes for enjoyable and occasionally
surprising reading. Robert Gibbs’s lighthearted introduction traces
the history of The Fiddlehead, from its inception in the 1940s at the
University of New Brunswick to its current incarnation under the
editorship of Don McKay. The selections are divided by decade, and each
section is prefaced with an article or reminiscence by an editor from
that period. The editors’ contributions are a mixed bag, but the
selections themselves shine. Included are excellent early poems by Joy
Kogawa and Erin Mouré, and contributions by such established writers as
Milton Acorn, Al Purdy, Michael Ondaatje, Margaret Atwood, and Carol
Shields.

Fiddlehead Gold gives readers a thoroughly entertaining tour of
Canadian literature.