The Abbey of Gethsemani is one of the most famous monasteries in the world. In this new Black Moss anthology, poet John B. Lee has pulled together a remarkable collection of writing about the Abbey by authors who have stayed there and by monks who have lived there. Against the backdrop of this writing is the presence of the late poet and philosopher Thomas Merton who made this Abbey famous with his book Seven Storey Mountain.
John B. Lee is the author of over fifty published books and the recipient of over seventy prestigious awards for poetry including being the only two-time winner of the People’s Poetry Award. In 2010 he received the Award of Merit for Professional Achievement from the University of Western Ontario. Named Poet Laureate of Brantford in perpetuity in 2005, his work has appeared internationally in over 500 publications. His work has been translated into Spanish, French, Korean, Chinese, and Hungarian and he has read his work throughout Canada and the United States as well as Korea, Cuba, and France. His translation of Cuban poetry published in the book Sweet Cuba has been called, “the most significant book of translated Cuban poetry ever published.” He is currently working on several projects including the anthology He is the editor of an anthology of essays and poems on the collapse of the economy and its impact on the arts, Tough Times: When the Money Doesn’t Love Us, . He lives on the shore of Lake Erie in Port Dover where he works as a full time author.
