Al Purdy was born in 1918, in Wooler, Ontario. He wrote his
first poem at the age of thirteen and published his first
collection of poetry, The Enchanted Echo, in 1944. In a writing
career that spanned over fifty years, he published over thirty
books of poetry; a novel; two volumes of memoirs, most recently
Reaching for the Beaufort Sea; and four books of correspondence,
including Margaret Laurence – Al Purdy: A Friendship in Letters.
His final collection of poetry, Beyond Remembering: The Collected
Poems of Al Purdy, will be released posthumously in the fall of
2000. Purdy also wrote radio and television plays for the CBC,
served as writer-in-residence at a number of Canadian universities,
and edited several anthologies of poetry.
As a teenager during the Great Depression, Purdy rode the rails
across Canada. In the Second World War he served in the RCAF, and
after the war he worked at a wide variety of jobs until the early
sixties, when he was able to support himself as a writer, editor,
and poet.
Moving to Roblin Lake in Ameliasburg, Ontario, in the late fifties
provided Purdy with a base from which he travelled and wrote.
Later, he divided his time between North Saanich, British Columbia,
and the Roblin Lake cottage.
Purdy won numerous awards for his poetry, including the Canadian
Authors Association Award, two Governor General’s Awards (for The
Cariboo Horses in 1965 and The Collected Poems of Al Purdy,
1956-1986 in 1986), and, most recently, the Voice of the Land
Award, a special award created by the League of Canadian Poets
specifically to honour Purdy’s unique contribution to Canada. He
was appointed to the Order of Canada in 1982 and to the Order of
Ontario in 1987.
Al Purdy died in North Saanich on April 21, 2000.
“Al Purdy mapped Canada poetically, and his mapping was as
important as any cartographer’s. He gave us a place to live in his
writing.”
–Lorna Crozier, National Post
“A fine first novel that combines the idealism of youth with the
wit and wisdom of age.”
–Ottawa Citizen
“Purdy has done for Canada what Walt Whitman once did for the
United States – he has made it recognizable to its
inhabitants.…[He] can touch the visible world with a tenderness and
visionary clarity few writers can match. …”
–Maclean’s
“He writes in a delightfully sparse, crisp style, effortlessly
melding his poet’s sense of grace with the novelist’s ear for
dialogue and eye for imagery.”
–NOW Magazine
“[Purdy] is an astute observer, and from his observations and
experiences fashions writing in which we can recognize
ourselves.”
–Prairie Fire
“A sensitive treatment of the ubiquitous coming-of-age theme, with
the descriptive power of Purdy the poet lending vivid, at times
beautiful, images to the narrative of Purdy the prose writer.”
–Saskatchewan StarPhoenix
“Purdy creates a number of scenes and images that carry conviction
and power.”
–Books in Canada
“A touching, semi-autobiographical coming-of-age novel.…At times it
is brilliant.…”
–Alberta Report
“We should be grateful for this book. It is a solid addition to
Canadian literature.…”
–Brantford Expositor
“This is a sensual and poetic novel that has all the verve and
humour of Purdy’s verse combined with some splendid
story-telling.”
–East Toronto Weekly
“[Purdy] creates vivid images in a crisp and clear style.…Once I
began reading it [I] found it difficult to put down.…Highly
recommended.”
–Fredericton Daily Gleaner
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