Group Profile
Owen Neill – Canada’s Poet of the Wolf
Born in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Owen Neill’s poetry is strongly tied to his environmental surroundings and the fierce ruggedness of the wild. This “Poet of the Wolf” has written many books of poetry about the misconceptions humans have developed about wolves through myths and popular culture and the persecution of this creature which has persisted for centuries. Through his work in collections such as “Under Moonleaves” and “Eye of the Wolf” Neill captures the essential elements shared between humans and wolves and gives his reader a new perspective on this proud and lonesome animal.
Neill has long nurtured a love for wilderness and the wolf; investing a significant number of his years on tour with the “Under Moonleaves Wolf Program” which brought timber wolves and other wildlife through schools in the form of a visitation program intended to provide children and adults with a hands-on opportunity to learn about respect and preservation of wildlife.
Neill’s poetry is dualistic in view as it looks both into the past through memory and into the future of human experiences. From his many years of life observation Neill has accumulated a number of insights into the complexities of the human condition and relationships which are expressed in his collection “She Said, He Said.” Neill takes us through a journey of the senses and without remorse or excuse leaves it to the reader to answer the really hard questions proposed through human interaction and self exploration.
Although a long-time Canadian author, Neill finds his warmest receptions to be in Ireland. His following on the Emerald Isle gathers at the Ballycatsle Writer’s Festival where Neill has been invited to read a number of times. Neill hopes to return to this festival in September 2008 to release his most recent publication “Circles in the Sand.”
“Circles in the Sand” varies from Neill’s other works as it is available with an audio disk of Neill performing his work with the gentle music accompaniment of his son Jeff Neill (a member of the Canadian band “Streethart”). Neill has been hard at work promoting “Circles in the Sand” to the Algoma district with readings at the Public Library, Art in the Park and the Festival of the Arts. Neill will be present during the month of December at the Arts Council’s upcoming Christmas Market in the Station Mall (across from the Scotia Bank) with much of his collection available to the public. “Circles in the Sand” is also available through the Arts Council office.
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