ABOUT EARLE BIRNEY
Canadian poet and author whose most famous works include Now is Time, The Bear on the Delhi Road, David and Other Poems, and Turvey. He received both the Governor General's Award and the Lorne Pierce Medal.
He grew up on a farm and held many odd jobs before studying at the Universities of Toronto, British Columbia, California (Berkeley), and London.
His 1942 poem "David," written on the topic of euthanasia, was both popular and controversial.
During his brief marriage to Sylvia Johnston, he began sharing his wife's Trotskyist political views.
He won Canada's Governor General's Award twice in his life; poet E.J. Pratt was a three-time recipient of the honor.
