Pearls

This pearl is a gem.

Pearls, a vivid collection of prose, poetry
and short stories, is written and produced
by students from Douglas College's Creative

Writing program.

Editors Janice Booth and Karen Souster
have presented Pearls as an “adventure”
that promises to "take you down the many

roads the writers have explored".

Pearls begins with a contemplation on the
self-doubts and frustrations of the arti-
stic experience in a forward by one of
Canada's leading poets, Dr. Rona Murray,
and then goes through a series of leaps in

genre and style and a range of emotions.

There is the bitterness of Joanne
Schmirler's poem "Fossils", a blunt comment
on the desecration of our rivers, as wel|
as the sarcastic "Sandwiches", tTonque-in-
cheek prose by Eric Howker, directed at

the upper crust.

Wide Variety of Poems Offered to Readers

Children's |iterature makes up a good part
There is the delightful silli-
| told
-", a short story by Marie Kadatz

of Pearls.
ness of "Would you believe me if
you..
about a witch in Stanley Park, and the
youthful tension of "Spider, spider on the
wall", a tale of an adventurous spider

named Maude.

And the sombre side of

—

life is also present

 

 

Mad Hatter Page 2 '

in the grim reality of Trish Matson's e|

"Pitt Lachere", a short story concerning

 

 

an old forgotten war veteran and the inevi-

table passing of time.

Although some of the pieces in Pearls lean
toward the abstract, they all have the
freshness of artists as yet unconcerned with

the commercial aspects of their art.

Co-editor Janice Booth, a contributor to
last year's Pearls, considers the publica-
tion to be invaluable in bringing the
Creative Writing program to public attention.
"A lot of people don't even know it's here,

satd Booth.

Maurice Hodgson, head of the Creative
Writing program, is the original founder

of Pearls. Hodgson began Pearls six yveo@®
ago at the old Richmond campus of Douglas
College and he believes it is important

for beginning writers to see their work

is often their first

chance," said Hodgson.

in print. "Pearls

Copies of Pearls can be obtained in the
Douglas College Bookstore or by contacting
Maurice Hodgson at 520-5400, Local 3320.

DOUGLAS COLLEGE NEWS SERVICES
- John McDonald