Goose

by Melanie Dennis Unrau

Shortlisted for the 2026 Lansdowne Prize for Poetry

Winner of the 2026 Alanna Bondar Memorial Book Prize

Poems that retrace unconscious lines of thought and flight to write a new history of the tar sands

Tracing words the way a tracker moves across land,
Goose collects hand-copied details from Northland Trails, a
book of self-illustrated short stories, poems, and essays about the
Athabasca region authored by “father of the tar sands” S. C. Ells.
At turns cheeky, sharp-witted, and grave, Melanie Dennis Unrau’s
poems explore extraction and the relationship between humans, non-
humans, and the land, resulting in an act of irreverent, deconstructive
literary criticism.

132 pages, Paperback

Published October 7, 2025

Reviews

[Jacob Alvarado · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning visual/found poetry that's equal parts accessible and captivating — easy to fly through in a single sitting, but unique and impactful enough that I'm certain it will linger for a long time to come. Also a fascinating companion to Kate Beaton's DUCKS: if you love that book and are curious for more historical info on the Alberta oil sands and its catastrophic impact on Indigenous people, this is essential reading.

[Michael]

My conversation with Unrau discussing the book here:
https://umfm.com/programming/broadcas...