In Rivers Applaud Forever, Raymond Filip, the craftsman and musician, showcases his spoken-word texts that perform on a silent page, as well as his "say then play" recitals on stage. This collection features free verse and end rhymes; satire and nature studies; a concrete poem and a proem; a linked sequence of narratives, and a long bird call to the uncaptured. Filip's peace process comes to terms with his birth and disfigurement in a displaced persons camp after World War II; the unspeakable abuses of growing up with domestic violence and a broken home in the riverside slums of Montréal; his adventures as part of the resistance movement that led to Lithuanian independence; the ups and downs of a mixed marriage to a Filipina; his battle with cancer; the journey of faith and global identity; and the joys of defying his age through his first love: sports.

Raymond Filip was born in Lübeck, Germany, 1950. He has written 5 books of poetry, as well as a collection of short stories entitled After The Fireworks (Guernica Editions 1989). In 1995 he won the QSPELL/QWF poetry award for his book Flowers In Magnetic Fields (Guernica Editions). His poems have appeared in major anthologies such as The Penguin Treasury of Canadian Popular Songs and Poems, The New Canadian Poets 1970-1985, and Canadian Poets of the 80s. A former Québec contributing editor to "Books in Canada," his articles and reviews have appeared in close to 100 magazines and periodicals around the world. His work has been translated into French, Spanish, Italian, and Lithuanian.

Raymond Filip's profile page