Martin Mitchinson, author of The Darien Gap: Travels in the Rainforest of Panama, comes to Vancouver Island this May, and will be presenting a talk and slideshow at the following locations:

· COURTENAY: Thursday May 22nd at 7:00pm, doors open at 6:30pm tickets are $6 for general public, $5 for museum members, at the Courtenay & District Museum (207 4th St). Books sold by Laughing Oyster.
· TOFINO: Friday, May 23rd at 8:00 pm at the Clayoquot Sound Community Theatre (370 Campbell St). Books will be sold by Mermaid Tales Bookshop.
· CAMPBELL RIVER: Martin will present a talk and slideshow on Saturday May 24th, at 4:00pm at Coho Books (1074 Shoppers Row).
· UCLUELET: Sunday, May 25th at 4:30 pm at Wild Heather Books (1576 Imperial Lane).

Fascinated by tales of Darien, writer Martin Mitchinson sailed into the heart of the province aboard his thirty-six-foot ketch, moved in with a native family and spent the next eighteen months travelling the province by foot and dugout canoe. After being swept under a jungle river at night and trapped in mangrove swamps, he eventually crossed the continental divide from Caribbean Sea to Pacific waters along the historic route of the Spanish explorer Balboa. But Mitchinson’s greatest achievement was in coming to understand the real Darien—a captivating land with an exotic history of pirates, conquistadores, native tribes and tragic adventurers. Through his words and photographs, the reader is introduced to the people of Darien who share the same struggles faced by indigenous groups the world over. Like the greatest travel writing it is also a deeply affecting story about a man finding himself as he explores the unknown.

Meet author and fishing expert Larry Stefanyk, co-author of the just-released Island Salmon Fisherman. Stefanyk will be signing copies of his new book at the grand opening celebrations for Tyee Marine’s new location, 870 Cliffe Avenue in Courtenay, on Saturday, May 3 from 1-3pm.

In writing Island Salmon Fisherman, experienced saltwater anglers Larry Stefanyk and Robert Jones tapped the expertise of over fifty professional fishing guides, resort operators, lure manufacturers and local highliners to compile the kind of knowledge that is usually gained only through years of on-the-water experience.

The greatest strength of Island Salmon Fisherman is that in addition to the latest in fishing techniques, it offers insider knowledge where the fish are to be found. In all, it documents 826 hotspots and important locations—each accompanied by GPS coordinates for easy reference on a marine chart or GPS device. Coverage runs down the west coast from Quatsino Sound to Victoria. East coast coverage includes waters around Port Hardy, Blackfish Sound, Sayward, Campbell River, Comox Valley, Qualicum, Parksville, Nanaimo, the Gulf Islands and Sidney. Each destination is covered in thorough detail, all lavishly supported with pictures, illustrations and maps.

Courtenay resident Robert H. Jones edits Island Fisherman magazine. Larry Stefanyk lives in Campbell River and is the founding publisher of Island Fisherman magazine. This is their third book with Harbour Publishing, having previously collaborated on Island Fly Fisherman and Island Halibut Fisherman.

For more information about the signing call 1-877-287-8933.

Nightwood Editions is pleased to announce that forage by Rita Wong has won the BC Book Prizes’ Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize. The $2,000 prize, awarded to the best book of poetry published in BC during the preceding year, was announced at the Lieutenant Governor’s BC Book Prize Gala held in Vancouver on Saturday, April 26.

Of her win, Wong said, "having just returned from a reading tour in the Kootenays with [other book prize nominees] Meg Tilly, David Jones and Heather Burt, I was surprised, happy, and grateful for this honour.  I'm very pleased that the BC Book Prizes are putting thousands of dollars of books into school libraries in this province through the Adopt-a-Library program.  I plan to devote the prize to supporting future projects that integrate creative practices with ecological concerns."

Like the title suggests, the poems in forage address the ravaging of the planet and humanity by abusive powers. Wong’s discourse situates itself on modern international political planes, but leaves space for humour, beauty and resilience to shine within this burning global landscape. forage confronts our current “value chain” in relation to such colossal topics as patriotism, environmental issues, race and gender roles, history, media, food, housing, addiction and the unsubstantiated accumulation of waste.

Wong intersperses the pages of forage with clever wordplay and frames her poems with evocative marginalia, Chinese characters and quotes from influential cultural icons. forage sings a song of “skeptical love in a body politic with revolt” through “the corridors of power noisy with mistakes” (stance). In the words of Shani Mootoo, “this little book of poems leads the literary wing of the 21st century’s people’s revolution” and is a vivid, fierce commentary on our international political landscape and the injustices it breeds.

 Adam Getty, author of the award-winning collection, Reconciliation, is back with a fresh new tour de force entitled Repose. He will be reading poems from Repose as part of Plan 99's reading series at Manx Pub, 370 Elgin Street, Ottawa on May 3 at 5:00 pm. To hear poems from Repose, visit Rabble TV , click on 'On Demand', 'Arts and Culture,' and 'Live Poet's Society--April 24, 2008.'

Getty’s poems explore the definition of cultural freedom, the relationship between life and production and our place within it all. His literary allusions subtly illuminate the philosophies from which his poems originate, touching upon the surrealism of Breton, the critical social theory of Adorno and the poetic lessons of Dennis Lee. Getty's narrative voice follows the development of western culture from ancient lands to modern industrial landscapes. Everywhere he is in search of cultural semiotics. In traditional poetic styles, Getty’s rhythm flows seamlessly from parable to song, his personas sometimes conversing with each other or violently overlapping. Getty’s attempt to find spontaneity and a modern idiom by writing in traditional poetic styles mirrors a cultural attempt to find freedom and vitality. By meticulously studying the poetic techniques of the past, Getty has put new wine into old wineskins: he has found a voice that is erudite, disciplined and, ultimately, free.

Adam Getty’s first collection, Reconciliation, received the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award and the Hamilton Literary Award for Poetry, and was shortlisted for the Trillium Poetry Award. His writing has been included in Breathing Fire 2: Canada’s New Poets. Adam has worked in a number of different industrial occupations and his experiences here resonate throughout his poetry. He currently lives in Hamilton.

For more information about this event, please call Manx Pub at 613-231-2070.

Newfoundland poet George Murray has been shortlisted for the Writers' Federation of Nova Scotia Atlantic Poetry Prize, for his latest book of poetry, The Rush to Here. Upon hearing the news Murray said he was, “chuffed to be in the company of great poets like Anne Simpson and Don Domanski and thrilled to a part of the arts scene out here by the ocean."

With his latest poetry collection, Murray proves once again he is one of his generation’s most accomplished poets as he breaks new ground with poems that are dangerous, sharp and glistening in both language and style. The Rush to Here darts through the absurdity of daily life to organize the mess and contradictions of modern society. Relentlessly honest, elegant in form and language, The Rush to Here is an intimidating, eerie, but ultimately hopeful collection.

George Murray’s three previous books of poetry include The Hunter (McClelland & Stewart, 2003) and The Cottage Builder’s Letter (M&S, 2001). His poems, fiction and criticisms have appeared in many publications in Canada, the US, the UK, Australia, and Europe. Murray won the 2003 New York Festivals Radio and Television Gold Medal for Best Writing for his broadcast poem “Anniversary: A Personal Inventory” and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. He is the editor and publisher of the popular literary website Bookninja.com and a contributing editor for several literary magazines, including Canadian Notes and Queries and The Drunken Boat. He lives in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

In 1993, the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia endowed funds ($5000) for a prize to honour the work of Atlantic poets. Led by Deirdre Dwyer, Atlantic Canadian poets gave readings, held bake sales, organized raffles and wrote letters. WFNS has subsequently worked to increase the endowment to ensure an annual $2,000 prize. Other books shortlisted for this prize are Quick, by Anne Simpson (McClelland & Stewart) and All Our Wonder Unavenged by Don Domanski (Brick Books).

2008 has been a noteworthy year for author Tim Bowling. His first book of non-fiction, The Lost Coast: Salmon, Memory and the Death of Wild Culture (Nightwood Editions), was recently shortlisted for three literary awards: The Writers’ Trust Nereus Non-Fiction Award, the BC Book Prizes’ Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize and the Alberta Literary Awards’ Wilfred Eggleston Award for Non-Fiction. It was also chosen as a  2008 Kiriyama Prize "Notable Book."  Bowling's 2007 novel, The Bone Sharps (Gaspereau Press), was also one of three nominated titles for the 2008 City of Edmonton Book Prize.

Now Bowling has received news that he is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, one of North America’s most prestigious awards. Guggenheim Fellows are appointed on the basis of stellar achievement and exceptional promise for continued accomplishment in their field. This year, the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation awarded 190 Fellowships to artists, scientists and scholars in over seventy-five disciplines, with awards totaling $8,200,000. There were over 2,600 applicants. Bowling is one of only three Canadians to receive the Fellowship, and the only Canadian writer.

In addition to his highly acclaimed memoir The Lost Coast, Tim Bowling has published three novels and seven poetry collections, including The Witness Ghost and The Memory Orchard—both nominated for the Governor General’s Literary Award for Poetry. Bowling is the recipient of the Petra Kenney International Poetry Prize, the Jack Chalmers Award, the National Poetry Award, the Stephan G. Stephansson Award and the Orillia International Poetry Prize.

An important literary press has just found a new home and new ownership. Vici Johnstone, currently the general manager for Harbour Publishing, one of Canada’s leading regional publishers, has just announced the purchase of Caitlin Press. She is now the sole owner and publisher.

Caitlin, a feminist literary press founded in 1977 by Carolyn Zonailo, was first located on Gabriola Island off BC’s Southern Coast. In the 1980s, Caitlin moved to Vancouver and was run as a literary press. For almost fifteen years Caitlin published talented BC women writers, such as Elizabeth Gourlay and Cathy Ford. In 1991 Cynthia Wilson purchased the press and moved it to Prince George, where she quickly established her reputation as the publisher of BC’s Central Interior.

Wilson passed away in 2005, leaving Caitlin in the care of her brother Howard White, the publisher of Harbour Publishing. For the past two years White has managed Caitlin for Wilson’s estate, publishing between two to four books each year. The company boasts an impressive backlist, including non-fiction BC bestsellers by Jack Boudreau and prestigious literary titles such as Soft Geography by Gillian Wigmore, which was recently shortlisted for the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize.

Publisher Johnstone began her diverse career in the arts over 30 years ago as a stage manager and sound designer for theatre. In 1989 she moved to the CBC Radio, where she worked as a technical engineer and designer in Current Affairs and the Arts. She wrote and produced Sounds of the Disappearing Prairies, a mini-documentary series for Calgary’s Wild Rose Country.

After 20 years in Alberta, Johnstone moved her family back to her native province and re-established her roots in BC. Since moving to the Sunshine Coast she has gained extensive publishing experience in media and entertainment, first as a new media producer for Basis Applied Technology, and then as the production and general manager for Harbour Publishing.

“As the publisher of Caitlin Press I intend to support and develop both of the press’s original mandates. The voices coming from BC’s Central Interior are fresh and real and reflect the heart and soul of BC. And, after 30 years of working in the arts it is clear to me that we still have a lot of work to do to bring women’s stories to the forefront. I am excited about re-establishing a press for BC’s women writers.”

Nightwood Editions is pleased to announce that Birch Split Bark by Diane Guichon has been shortlisted for The Writer's Guild of Alberta City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize.

Diane Guichon, along with the two other shortlisted authors will be participating in a reading presented by McNally Robinson Booksellers on Saturday, May 3rd at 10:30 am.

In her debut collection of poems, Birch Split Bark, Diane Guichon uses a quintessentially Canadian image—a birch bark canoe—to speak of those private waters that make us universally human. By writing in the first person of a father, a mother, a son and a daughter, she bridges age to gender, myth to memory and hatred to reconciliation.

Diane Guichon is an MA graduate of the Creative Writing Program at the University of Calgary. Birch Split Bark is her first published book of poetry.

The City of Calgary established the W.O. Mitchell Book Prize in honour of the late Calgary writer W.O. Mitchell to recognize literary achievement by Calgary authors. The $5000 prize is awarded each year for an outstanding book published in the award year. The other two finalists are: Glen Dresser for Correction Road (Oberon Press) and Roberta Rees for Long After Fathers (Coteau Books).

Harbour Publishing, Nightwood Editions and Caitlin Press are pleased to announce their shortlisted titles for the BC Book prizes:

Harbour Publishing:
Fortunes a River: The Collision of Empires in Northwest America by Barry Gough (Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize).

The Blue Flames that Keep Us Warm by Mike McCardell (BC Booksellers’ Choice Award in Honour of Bill Duthie).

Nightwood Editions:
The Lost Coast: Salmon, Memory and the Death of Wild Culture by Tim Bowling (Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize).

forage by Rita Wong (Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize).

Caitlin Press:
Soft Geography by Gillian Wigmore (Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize).

The BC Book Prizes were founded in 1985, to celebrate BC's writers and publishers. The Prizes are administered and awarded by members of a non-profit society who represent all areas of the publishing and writing community. For a complete list of nominees please visit: http://www.bcbookprizes.ca/winners.

Victoria historian, Dr. Barry Gough and Edmonton writer, Tim Bowling have both been shortlisted for the prestigious Nereus Writers’ Trust Non-Fiction Prize for their newest works, Fortune’s a River: The Collision of Empires in Northwest America (Harbour Publishing) and The Lost Coast: Salmon, Memory and the Death of Wild Culture (Nightwood Editions).

When author Barry Gough, who was reached as he was traveling in the Lower Mainland, found out about the shortlist he said he was, “quite excited and honoured to be selected, especially in such great company. I was on the road when I heard, and it was quite a nice surprise.”

“I was delighted to learn that The Lost Coast has been shortlisted for this prestigious award,” says Bowling, reached at his Edmonton home. “It is always gratifying and humbling when a jury of peers finds merit in one’s work, especially when the work in question is a labour of love for a place, a people, and a time that have always meant so much to me.”

Gough was the founding director of Canadian Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University. As the author of ten previous books, he has been called the “foremost expositor of BC nautical history.”

Bowling has published three novels and seven poetry collections, and is the recipient of the Petra Kenney International Poetry Prize, the Jack Chalmers Award, the National Poetry Award, the Stephan G. Stephansson Award and the Orillia International Poetry Prize.

The Nereus Writers’ Trust Non-Fiction Prize is a Canadian literary award, presented annually by Nereus Financial and the Writers’ Trust of Canada, for the best work of non-fiction by a Canadian writer.  The winner receives a prize of $15,000, and all finalists receive $2,000. The winner will be announced on April 1, 2008 in Toronto.