Tag: Poet

Margaret Atwood

Canadian writer Margaret Atwood was born on this day in 1939 in Ottawa. Atwood is a prolific writer of dozens of titles, including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, graphic novels and children’s books. Margaret Atwood is best known for 1985’s The Handmaid’s Tale, a dystopian novel that is perhaps even more relevant today than it was when it won the Governor-General’s Award in 1985 and the Arthur C. Clark Award in 1987, and was a finalist for the Booker Prize. Atwood did go on to win the prestigious Booker Prize, for best English language novel, in 2000 for The Blind Assassin, and was a co-winner in 2019 for The Testaments, a much celebrated sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale.

Canada’s Poet Laureate

Marie-Célie Agnant is Canada’s Poet Laureate.

source: lop.parl.ca

Ms. Agnat was appointed as the Parliamentary Poet Laureate for 2023 & 2024.

According to the Parliament of Canada, the role of the Poet Laureate is:

  • To write poetry, especially for use in Parliament on important occasions;
  • To sponsor poetry readings;
  • To advise the Parliamentary Librarian regarding the Library’s collection and acquisitions to enrich its cultural materials and
  • To perform other related duties at the request of the Speaker of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Commons, or the Parliamentary Librarian.*

Click here to find out more about Ms. Agnat

Click here to find out more about the position of Parliamentary Poet Laureate

April is Poetry Month in Canada. Visit your School Library to find out more.