Devil in the Woods

by D.A. Lockhart

A collection of letter and prayer poems in which an Indigenous speaker engages with non-Indigenous famous Canadians. D.A. Lockhart's stunning and subversive fourth collection gives us the words, thoughts, and experiences of an Anishinaabe guy from Central Ontario and the manner in which he interacts with central aspects and icons of settler Canadian culture. Riffing off Richard Hugo's 31 Letters and 13 Dreams , the work utilizes contemporary Indigenous poetics to carve out space for often ignored voices in dominant Canadian discourse (and in particular for a response to this dominance through the cultural background of an Indigenous person living on land that has been fundamentally changed by settler culture). The letter poems comprise a large portion of this collection and are each addressed to specific key public figures-from Sarah Polley to Pierre Berton, k.d. lang to Robertson Davies, Don Cherry to Emily Carr. The second portion of the pieces are prayer poems, which tenderly illustrate hybrid notions of faith that have developed in contemporary Indigenous societies in response to modern and historical realities of life in Canada. Together, these poems act as a lyric whole to push back against the dominant view of Canadian political and pop-culture history and offer a view of a decolonized nation. Because free double-doubles?
tease us like bureaucratic promises
of medical coverage and housing
not given to black mold and torn-
off siding. Oh Lord, let us sing anew,
in this pre-dawn light, a chorus
that shall not repeat Please Play Again.
( from "Roll Up the Rim Prayer" )

Genres: Poetry

72 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2019

About the author

D.A. Lockhart is the author of nine books, including North of Middle Island (Kegedonce Press, 2023) Bearmen Descend Upon Gimli (Frontenac House, 2021) and Breaking Right: Stories (Porcupine's Quill, 2021). His work has appeared in Best Canadian Poetry in English 2019, TriQuarterly, ARC Poetry Magazine, Grain, Belt, and the Malahat Review among many. His work has garnered multiple Pushcart Prize nominations, Best of the Net nominations, and National Magazine Prize Nominations. His books have been shortlisted for the ReLit Award, Indiana Authors Awards, First Nations Communities READ Awards, and the Raymond Souster Award.

Lockhart is a Turtle Clan member of Eelünaapéewi Lahkéewiit (Lenape), a registered treatied member of the Moravian of the Thames First Nation, and currently resides at the south shore of Waawiiyaatanong (Windsor,ON-Detroit, MI) and Pelee Island. His work has been generously supported by the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts. He is the publisher at Urban Farmhouse Press.

Reviews

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the poetry was beautiful, the letters I found to be a bit redundant. I would say I enjoyed the novel, but I wouldn’t ever rave about it.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought provoking poetry for both indigenous and non-indigenous readers alike.