Heralding a new regionalism, New Brunswick interrogates the popular representations of Shane Neilson's home province. Structured as a group of serial long poems, this fifth book by the winner of the 2017 Walrus Poetry Prize recasts the political, economic, and social histories of settler New Brunswick, particularly as they relate to the sacrifices of his parents. As forests are reborn and fields are healed by rest, Neilson insists that though "we want catastrophes of fire," out of the ashes of charred dreams and old myths arise avenues for reconciliation through vulnerability and affect.

Shane Neilson's profile page

Shane Neilson was born in New Brunswick. He attended the University of New Brunswick, where he completed his BSc. He obtained his MD from Dalhousie University, his MFA from the University of Guelph, and is currently a PhD candidate at McMaster University. Neilson is the author of five collections of poetry, a two-time winner of the Arc Poetry Magazine Poem of the Year Award, and the 2017 winner of The Walrus Poetry Prize.

Praise for New Brunswick

"Immediately evident in Neilson's writing is an attentive musicality...Extensive and grounding imagery...[His] sharp observations entice. New Brunswick rings in tone and tribute as a moody historic elegy." —Quill & Quire

Praise for Shane Neilson

“Shane Neilson’s Meniscus is an example of that rare and defining moment in a poet’s career when subject and language meld into authentic poetic voice.” —Winnipeg Free Press

“Neilson’s ability to make the bipolar mind comprehensible, a place that needs to be understood, in ‘Manic Statement’ is perhaps the book’s greatest success. It never lapses into cliché and even manages to slip in a bit of wit.” —Canadian Literature

“Neilson’s use of language is stark, but this off-kilter beauty is arresting . . . Although the territory Neilson covers in his debut tradebook is undoubtedly dark, there are still many worthwhile moments to be forged in its depths.” —Northern Poetry Review

“[Neilson] dares to dream.” —The Prairie Journal