The Weather and the Words: The Selected Letters of John Newlove, 1963-2003, gathers hundreds of never-before-seen letters from the poet John Newlove’s archives and sheds light on an author who was, to many Canadian writers, a literary master. Despite his stature during his lifetime, Newlove has been largely forgotten, and these letters remind readers of what an influential, compelling, and combative figure he was in Canadian literary history.
Newlove lived and wrote during a time when Canadian writers were well-funded, widely read, and members of thriving literary communities. By the time he died in 2003, that culturally prosperous era had ended. Something else had changed, too: the practice of letter writing began to disappear as email replaced mailed correspondence. Telling the story of Newlove’s life, The Weather and the Words pays tribute not just to this one remarkable poet, but also to a remarkable era in Canadian history and the lost art of letter writing, the medium through which writers, politicians, and other public figures fought, collaborated, conferred, and philosophized about art and culture throughout the twentieth century.
In Newlove’s correspondence readers will find a compelling story about the incredible difficulty of establishing a literary career and raising a family while struggling with poverty, addiction, and mental health issues. Through colourful letters Newlove exchanged with Canadian writers such as Margaret Atwood, Susan Musgrave, Michael Ondaatje, Al Purdy, and numerous others, The Weather and the Words gives readers a ground-level view of Newlove’s life and era. The book includes a foreword by Lorna Crozier, an introduction by editor J.A. Weingarten, and an afterword by Laura Cameron.

J.A. Weingarten is a Professor at Fanshawe College and the author of Sharing the Past (2019) and the co-editor of Unpacking the Personal Library (2022). He has also published numerous articles and papers on Canadian literature and culture. He lives with his family in Guelph, Ontario, where he can be found carefully tending to his tomato garden.

J.A. Weingarten's profile page

Lorna Crozier, one of Canada's most celebrated poets, has read from her work on every continent. She has received numerous awards, including the Governor General's Award, for her fifteen books of poetry, which include The Blue Hour of the Day: Selected Poems; Whetstone; Apocrypha of Light; What the Living Won't Let Go; A Saving Grace; Everything Arrives at the Light; Inventing the Hawk; Angels of Flesh, Angels of Silence; and The Garden Going On Without Us. She has also edited several anthologies, among them Desire in Seven Voices and, with Patrick Lane, Addicted: Notes from the Belly of the Beast. She lives in Saanich, BC.

Lorna Crozier's profile page

Laura Cameron's profile page

John Newlove was a troubled man and a fine poet. His letters recount long nights and bleak days, but above all they return readers to his astringent, astonishing poems. The Weather and the Words is a significant contribution to the story of modern poetry in Canada. What a gift to have the correspondence so thoughtfully edited by J. A. Weingarten, and what a pleasure to meet Newlove all over again.

Nicholas Bradley, Department of English, University of Victoria

It is good to hear John Newlove's voice again through these letters, back from those days when letters (well before the advent of emails, text messages) were a stronger means of communication between writers, between poets. As Weingarten offers in his detailed introduction, this is where battles were fought, shots were lobbied, generosities offered and questions answered, all of which Newlove composed in thoughtful detail. Every gesture was for the sake of the work. Weingarten puts the spotlight on an important Canadian poet and the context in which he existed, across a wide-ranging literature.

rob mclennan, author of the book of sentences