There is an esoteric dimension in Pierre Micheloud’s poetry that reminds us of the alchemist’s quest. Esoteric, in most dictionaries, refers to the obscure, the abstruce, the impenetrable. But if we go back to the Greek origins of esô and esôterikos, the terms pertain to what comes from within, the secret within. What poetry is being written that does not rise from within one’s being, from within the world and cosmos? No wonder the four elements figure predominantly in her work. For many men and women alchemy consists of transforming lead concretely into gold. Micheloud stresses how alchemy is about truly changing the lead of consciousness (obscurity) and the gold of the light of this consciousness. Micheloud fashions private mythology into what unfolds the mysteries of the universe, by removing the barriers of time and space. If a poem points to some secret interior image (in other words, the esoteric), she bends meaning to include the sensitive reading of what can be accessible to anyone who is willing to take the time to dedicate her total attention to the work. […} She allows snow to fall like grace onto the white page. A tree quivers infinitesimally. A flower is sweet-smelling, a bird a musician. Micheloud lives in perfect symbiosis with nature, in which even a stone possesses a soul. ~ from the Afterword by Jean-Peirre Vallotton

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Antonio D'Alfonso was born in Montreal. He studied at Loyola College from 1970 to 1975, where he got his B.A. in Communication Arts. Later on he went to Université de Montréal to complete his Master's Science Degree in Communication Studies, specializing in Semiology; his thesis was on Mouchette, a film by Robert Bresson. In 1978 he founded Guernica Editions, where he edited over 450 books by authors from around the world. In 1982 along with three other writers, he founds the trilingual magazine, Vice Versa. In 1986, along with three other writers, he founded the Association of Italian-Canadian writers. He has taught at Université of Montréal, Continuing Studies at University of Toronto, University of Californa, in San Diego. He is presently a writer in residence at McGill University (French language and literature department).

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