The Bush Garden: Essays on the Canadian Imagination

Originally published in 1971,The Bush Garden features Northrop Fryes timeless essays on Canadian literature and painting, and an introduction by bestselling author Lisa Moore.

In this cogent collection of essays written between 1943 and 1969, formidable literary critic and theorist Northrop Frye explores the Canadian imagination through the lens of the countrys artistic output: prose, poetry, and paintings. Frye offers insightful commentary on the works that shaped a Canadian sensibility, and includes a comprehensive survey of the landscape of Canadian poetry throughout the 1950s, including astute criticism of the work of E. J. Pratt, Robert Service, Irving Layton, and many others.

Written with clarity and precision,The Bush Garden is a significant cache of literary criticism that traces a pivotal moment in the countrys cultural history and the evolution of Fryes thinking at various stages of his career. These essays are evidence of Fryes brilliance, and cemented his reputation as Canadas and the worlds foremost literary critic.