Griffin Poetry Prize finalist Kevin Connolly to read at York

Poet, editor, arts journalist and York alumnus, Kevin Connolly (BA Hons. ’85) will read from his works of poety, including his latest, Revolver on Wednesday as part of York’s Creative Writing Program in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies.

Connolly’s reading will take place Jan. 27, from 2:30 to 4:30pm, in the Paul Delaney Gallery, 320 Bethune College, Keele campus.

Kevin ConnollyLeft: Kevin Connolly

His most recent collection of poetry, Revolver (House of Anansi Press, 2008), was a finalist for the 2009 Griffin Poetry Prize and is billed as “a daring marriage of brilliant technical skill and explosive imagination” where each poem exhibits a “different vocal register”.

Connolly’s first collection of poems, Asphalt Cigar (Coach House Books, 1995), was nominated for the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award. His second collection, Happyland, came out in 2002, published by ECW Press, and his third, Drift (House of Anansi Press, 2005), won the Trillium Book Award for Poetry.

When not writing his own poetry, Connolly works as a poetry editor at Coach House Books and as an editor for ECW Press. He is also a former editor at Toronto’s Eye Weekly and co-founder, along with fellow York alumnus Jason Sherman (BA Hons. ’85), of the Toronto literary magazine What!, which published international and Canadian writing from 1985 to 1993.

Copies of Connolly’s books will be available for purchase at the reading.

Light refreshments will be served. Everyone is welcome to attend.