Go to The Globe and Mail

 

Blogs

Subscribe to RSS
In Other Words
In Other Words is the site blog for Globe Books. It is written by Peter Scowen and by guest bloggers from the literary world.
Entry archive:
 

Thursday, June 18, 2009 9:41 AM

David Mansfield Bromige (1933-2009)

Judith Fitzgerald

Carolyn Jones (San Francisco Chronicle): "David Bromige, a mentor to hundreds of young poets and known for his generous spirit and impeccable syntax, died June 3 at his home in Sebastopol, CA. He was 75 . . . Mr. Bromige, a retired creative-writing professor at Sonoma State University, had suffered from diabetes and complications of a stroke and heart attack . . . 'He was brilliant, funny, emotional, unpredictable, impulsive and very warm,' said colleague Gerald Rosen, a San Francisco novelist. 'He knew as much about contemporary poetry as anyone in the world' . . ."

"What do we know. It ceases,
others come to see as much as we.

Those stars are me,
these sounds. Tears blur
& bring them to a field of points."
-- "Still There," Desire: Selected Poems 1963-1987

As many IOWers know, David Bromige's Canadian connections run deep; and, although belated, I am sure it will provide some small comfort to his wife (Cecelia Belle) and children (Margaret and Chris) to learn we join together to extend our heartfelt regrets and condolences. On the memorial blog created to celebrate the life and work of the "poet, writer, reviewer, actor, farmer, explorer, cartographer, storyteller, illustrator, piano player, driver, swimmer, traveler, brother, uncle, father, grandfather, husband, friend, mentor, [and] inspiration," readers will discover a wealth of "memories, thoughts, impressions and opinions" as well as links to tributes and remembrances alongside details concerning the July 5th Celebratory Afternoon at Ragle Road Ranch near downtown Sebastopol, CA (to which all who knew the unassuming titan or his splendidly crafted and sublimely shaped body of work are warmly invited).

RIP, David Bromige, an extraordinary poet and human being whose work will live forever (thanks, in no small part, to the laudable efforts of PennSound's directors, Charles Bernstein and Al Filreis).

Latest Comments

Latest posts from In Other Words

Leonard Cohen: The latest on the greatest Nov 06, 2009 5:17PM EST

Night of the living authors Nov 06, 2009 10:53AM EST

You’re pre-approved to buy my friend’s book. The catch? It costs $199.99 Nov 03, 2009 3:44PM EST

Talks for jocks Nov 03, 2009 3:35PM EST

Heartbreaker Lord Byron busts the bank! Nov 03, 2009 2:17PM EST

Windsor's wonderful writerly ways Nov 02, 2009 4:11PM EST

IFOA: Scenes from a Festival, III Nov 02, 2009 4:38PM EST

IFOA guest post: Who are you people and why don’t you like poetry the rest of the year? Nov 02, 2009 11:36AM EST

In Other Words Contributors

Peter Scowen

Peter Scowen is a communities editor with the Globe and Mail and is responsible for the Globe Books website. He is a veteran reporter and editor who has worked for a number of dailies and alternative weeklies in Toronto and Montreal. He is the author of Rogue Nation: The America the Rest of the World Knows.

 
 

Judith Fitzgerald

Judith Fitzgerald -- poet, editor and cultural critic with 30 works (including poetry, biography, anthologies and children's books) to her credit -- writes about poetry for In Other Words and is a contributing reviewer for this newspaper as well as a Poetry Fellow of the Chalmers Arts Foundation. Short-listed for (or recipient of) several major honours including the Fiona Mee, Trillium, Governor-General's Poetry and Writers’ Choice Awards (among others), she recently completed The Adagios Quartet. The ex-Torontonian now calls the Almaguin Highlands home.

 
 

Linda Leith

Linda Leith is the founder and artistic director of the Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival. The annual festival was the world's first multilingual (including English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Farsi, Italian, Urdu...) books festival when it was launched in 1999. Linda's most recent book is Marrying Hungary (2008).

 
 

Brian Joseph Davis

Brian Joseph Davis is an artist and writer based in Toronto. He's the co-founder of Joyland.ca and has written for Arthur Magazine, The Utne Reader, and Eye Weekly. He's the author of the books Portable Altamont (Coach House, 2005) and I,Tania (ECW, 2008), which Slate.com called "the book of your fever dreams."

 
 

Ben McNally

Ben McNally has been a bookseller in Toronto for more than 30 years and has been operating his own store, Ben McNally Books, in the heart of Toronto's financial district on Bay Street since September 2007. In partnership with the Globe and Mail, he co-ordinates the popular Sunday Authors Brunch Series at the King Edward Hotel, and has, for the past two years, been the bookseller at the International Festival of Authors.