Ultramarine by Harry Thurston

It’s fitting to read Ultramarine as the year dies, though it was published in the spring. Harry Thurston’s collection of poems meditates on time and changes, looking at the lives that could have been, the seasons changing, and the ruins of those that came before us. This is a deeply reflective collection and one I found myself referring to a few times over the last few weeks, as I begin to do my reflections on the year. Ultramarine is for those searching for a companion to reflect with in these times. Thurston speaks to his brother in “The Afterlife,” muses on his abandoned career path in “Medicine,” and watches winter arrive in “Hooded Mergansers.”

Thurston divides the collection into four parts: “Little Wonders,” “Tesserae,” “In Season,” and “When We Leave.” Interestingly, he opens the collection with the titular poem, “Ultramarine,” leaving it outside of his structure of sections. Each section has some common themes, but I was most drawn to the poems which made use of blank space on the page and sparing words in the “Tesserae” section. Thurston also delves into the pandemic, trying to sort out the feelings and happenings of the world during that strange and confusing time.

“An empty bus passes by, / keeping its schedule, though / everyone is at home,” Thurston writes in “In Season,” the titular poem leaving off the third section of the collection. It is moments like these that Thurston really shines, capturing the small moments which encapsulate the larger feelings we have about these experiences. This was a lovely collection, and it’s nice to read a collection which fits so well with the time of year you happen to read in.

Harry Thurston is an award-winning poet and journalist whose environmental writing has been published in Audubon, Canadian Geographic, and National Geographic. Thurston lives in Tidnish Bridge, Nova Scotia, and is a Mentor in the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Nonfiction program at University of King’s College.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Gaspereau Press (July 6 2023)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 94 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1554472539
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1554472536

Alison Manley

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Alison Manley has ricocheted between New Brunswick and Nova Scotia for most of her life. Now in Halifax, Nova Scotia, she is the Cataloguing and Metadata Librarian at Saint Mary's University. Her past life includes a long stint as a hospital librarian on the banks of the mighty Miramichi River. She has an honours BA in political science and English from St. Francis Xavier University, and a Master of Library and Information Studies from Dalhousie University. While she's adamant that her love of reading has nothing to do with her work, her ability to consume large amounts of information very quickly sure is helpful. She is often identified by her very red lipstick, and lives with her partner Brett and cat, Toasted Marshmallow.