Small Arguments

Small Arguments, a re-issued poetry collection by the Scotiabank Giller Prize–winning author of How To Pronounce Knife, features a new introduction by the author. These poems, reminiscent of Pablo Neruda’s Elemental Odes, explore the structures of argument through themes that range from small lives to everyday objects, using repetition, variation, and contrast. Approaching their material like scientists or philosophers, the poems delve into meaning and understanding, highlighting the power of creation from what we know. First published in 2003, the collection introduced a uniquely original voice in contemporary poetry.