Garden in the Rain

In this début collection Dell Catherall shapes language the way a gardener prunes an aspen tree. Paying tribute to a garden a husband a son lost to childhood demons the poems in this collection connect the humble to the luminous. A draft dodger collects wild plants from the coast of British Columbia. Camellias bloom as a sex worker from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside enters a creative writing class. Witch hazel acts as a metaphor for a son suffering with bipolar disorder.<br /><br />With the four seasons as an overarching structure Catherall deftly moves between forms: A palindrome reveals the murderous and miraculous qualities of rhubarb. Fig Sestina describes a perfect summer gift from the husband's garden.<br /><br />Frozen hellebore blooms and bleeding hearts garland a journey through motherhood marriage and friendship while wisteria cascades outside the boundaries of pleasure and grief. Lush fragrant and humming with life A Garden in the Rain reminds us that all is never lost-that plants may die but gardens are forever.