Earle Birney

Earle Birney (1904-1995) was born in Calgary, Alberta, and passed away in Toronto, Ontario. He published over twenty books of poetry that vary greatly in form, content, and method, but that cohere along the lines of experiment, play, and a deep love of language. His writing won him a variety of prizes, notably the Governor General’s Award for poetry, both for David and Other Poems (1942) and for Now Is Time (1945), and the Stephen Leacock Medal for his darkly comic novel about the Second World War, Turvey (1950). Birney’s literary output extends across genres, including poetry, fiction, and playwriting, and his community outreach includes editorial work, as well as the founding and directing of the first Canadian creative writing program at the University of British Columbia. Birney’s impact on Canadian literature can be summarized, in George Bowering’s words: Birney was “the Dean of Canadian Poetry, […] the Federal Minister of Poetry” (Bowering at Birney Reading 23 February 1968, Sir George Williams Poetry Series, 00:00:23).