Rhea Tregebov (born 1953) is a Canadian poet, novelist and

children's writer Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. In addition to conventional literary genres, modern children's literature is classified by the intended age of the reade ...

who lives in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, British Columbia. In her work as teacher and editor, she has mentored and inspired generations of Canadian poets . Her poetry is characterized by a strong poetic voice, intellectual honesty, and a compassionate engagement with the extraordinary lived experience of "ordinary" life. An early influence was Pablo Neruda: "And it was at that age … Poetry arrived/in search of me. ��there I was without a face/and it touched me". (from “''Poesía''”). Tregebov is also the author of two novels, ''Rue des Rosiers'' and ''The Knife-Sharpener’s Bell'', as well as five popular children's picture books. From 2021 to 2023 she was Chair of The Writers' Union of Canada.

Background

Born in

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

, Saskatchewan and raised in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

, Manitoba, Tregebov attended the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

Cornell Cornell University is a private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson White in 1865. Since ...

, and

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

universities. She lived in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, working as a freelance writer, editor, and Creative Writing Instructor. She taught Continuing Education for

Ryerson University Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU, or Toronto Met), formerly Ryerson University, is a public research university located in Toronto, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District in downtown Toronto, although i ...

and was on faculty at the Banff Centre for the Arts. In January 2005 she has hired by the Creative Writing Program at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

, where she was promoted to associate professor in 2012. At UBC she specialized in poetry, writing for children, and translation. In June 2017, she retired from UBC; she currently is an Associate Professor Emerita.

Bibliography

Poetry

*''Remembering History'' – 1982 (winner of the

Pat Lowther Award The Pat Lowther Memorial Award is an annual Canadian literary award presented by the League of Canadian Poets to the year's best book of poetry by a Canadian woman. The award was established in 1980 to honour poet Pat Lowther, who was murdered by ...

), *''No One We Know'' – 1986, *''The Proving Grounds'' – 1991, *''Mapping the Chaos'' – 1995, *''The Strength of Materials'' – 2001, *''(alive): Selected and new poems'' – 2004, *''All Souls 2012 *''Talking to Strangers'' 2024

Children's books

*''The Extraordinary Ordinary Everything Room'' – 1991, *''The Big Storm'' – 1992, *''Sasha and the Wiggly Tooth'' – 1993, *''Sasha and the Wind'' – 1996, *''What-If Sara'' – 1999,

Novels

*''The Knife Sharpener's Bell'' – 2009, *''Rue des Rosiers'' – 2019,

Background

Bibliography

Poetry

Children's books

Novels

See also

References

Further reading