星子安娜的最新英文诗集《绽放》(Breaking into Blossom/Frontenac House 2025) 是献给所有温情而浪漫读者的又一份礼物，特别适合那些喜爱沉浸于丰富哲理和美丽意象中的人。请安心阅读——即便在多变的加拿大天气中（我第一次阅读这本诗集，正值2025年春天暴风雪来袭）。这是一部充满关怀以及思考的诗集，谱写喜悦与悲怜、家庭与社会的变迁，以及对失落孤独者的真挚祈祷。
这本90页的诗集涵盖了广泛的主题与语调。从描绘花卉之美丽孤傲与其特定象征意义的《安妮女王的花边》《金银花与梯子》等诗作起笔，诗人借《猴王》《采访严力》《裁判的游戏》《奇琴伊察之旅》《布鲁盖尔的两只猴子》等作品步入更广阔的世界。主题诗《绽放》从不同视角记载了个人如何试图绽放以及社会的各种碎裂断层。随之，诗集拓展至更细节更地域的视野：《稀有鲍鱼》《一对黄石公园马克杯》《红辣椒女孩》《造访花瓶岛》等作品，引出关于树木作为生命意义的广泛思索——《生命树》《灵魂树》《空心树》《有些树来会我》——以及《我也咬到诗歌的多汁果实》中的奇趣。贯穿全书的除了对家庭与友情的回忆还有更深入的历史回溯。而在《无人认领》《梨》《亲爱的》《真相》等诗中，诗集最终以对爱与人性的深刻洞察收束。
星子安娜的诗歌语言源自多重灵感：文学、音乐、神话与哲思，她在诗中引用并回应了丰富的文化与人物形象。令人着迷的一点，是她为来自中国、北美以及欧洲及其他历史与国际人物所写的诗篇。灵感来源包括：施家彰、严力、女娲神话、乔治·奥威尔、屈原、约瑟夫·布罗茨基、T·S·艾略特、艾米莉·狄金森、比利·柯林斯、约翰·阿什贝里、里尔克、莱昂纳德·科恩与华莱士·史蒂文斯。在这些背景下，她的诗作因对加拿大亚裔生活的深刻体察、以及对至亲家人的深情关爱而格外动人。她对生活与家庭的个人省思尤其深刻感人。
星子安娜的创作广受肯定。她以中英文进行诗歌写作与翻译，自2011年第一部英文诗集(Wings toward Sunlight /Mosaic press）出版以来，在十余年间已发表大量作品。陆续出版六本英文诗集，目前这部新作之前，另有2024年出版的中文诗集《漂》及多部为加拿大诗人Katherine L. Gordon、DC Reid与Don Gutteridge翻译成中文的诗集。她是密西沙加市第一位桂冠诗人（2015–2017），也是加拿大诗人联盟安大略省代表（2013–2016）。她曾获2005年Ted Plantos纪念奖及其他十多个奖项。其诗作与译作曾见于《皇后季刊》（Queen’s Quarterly）、《ARC诗刊》、《纽约时报》、《中国日报》以及CBC电台，并曾在加拿大国会山、奥斯汀国际诗歌节、埃德蒙顿诗歌节、以及中加美三国的多所大学朗读其作品。
《绽放》是一部层次丰富的诗集，充分展现出诗人敏锐的洞察力与广阔的精神世界。
苏珊·麦克马斯特
苏珊·麦克马斯特（Susan McMaster）已出版逾四十部作品，包括诗集、录音专辑及选集，近期作品有《扎根》（Grounded，Black Moss出版社，2023年）。她曾担任加拿大诗人联盟主席及其女性主义核心小组（Feminist Caucus）主席。
Anna Yin – REVIEW OF BREAKING INTO BLOSSOM
Anna Yin’s new poetry collection Breaking into Blossom is another gift to all warm-hearted and romantic readers, especially those who delight in immersing themselves in rich philosophical layers and beautiful imagery. Take your time with it—even in the ever-changing Canadian weather (I first read this collection during a fierce snowstorm this past spring). It is a work of deep care and contemplation, weaving together joy and sorrow, family and community transformation, and heartfelt prayers for those lost or alone.
This 90-page collection spans a wide range of themes and tones. It opens with reflections on the beauty, solitude, and symbolic meanings of flowers in poems such as “Queen Anne’s Lace” and “Honeysuckles and Ladders.” The poet then moves into broader territory with pieces like “Monkey King,” “Interviewing Yan Li,” “Umpires’ Game,” “Chichen Itza Tour,” and “Bruegel’s Two Monkeys.” The title poem, Breaking into Blossom, chronicles not only the poet’s journey toward self-realization but also gestures toward society’s fault lines. The collection then zooms in on smaller, more personal vistas in poems such as “The Rare Abalone,” “A Pair of Yellowstone Mugs,” “Girl as Red Pepper,” and “Visiting Flowerpot Island,” before shifting into meditations on trees as living symbols—“The Life Tree,” “Spirit Tree,” “The Hollow Tree,” and “Some Trees Come to Me”—and ending with a touch of playful whimsy in “I Too Bite the Juicy Fruit of Poetry.” Threaded throughout the collection are not only memories of family and friendship but also resonant historical echoes. Finally, the poems “Unclaimed,” “Pears,” “Dearly,” and “Truth” bring the book to a close with sharp insights into love and the human condition.
Anna Yin’s poetic language draws on a wealth of sources: literary, musical, mythological, and philosophical. One of the most captivating features of the collection is her poems written for and about historical and international figures from China, North America, Europe, and beyond. These sources include Arthur Sze, Yan Li, the myth of Nuwa, George Orwell, QuYuan, Joseph Brodsky, Priscilla Uppal, James Rold, T.S. Eliot, Emily Dickinson, Billy Collins, John Ashbery, Rilke, Leonard Cohen, and Wallace Stevens. Against this rich backdrop, her poems stand out for their insight into life in Canada from the perspective of the Asian diaspora and their tenderness toward beloved family members. Her personal reflections on life and kinship are deeply moving.
Anna Yin's work has gained widening recognition. Writing and translating poetry in both Chinese and English, Yin has published extensively in the decade and half since her first English book-length publication, Wings Toward Sunlight(Mosaic Press 2011). This was followed by six English collections before the current one, the Chinese collection Drifting in 2024, and translations into Chinese for Canadian poets Katherine L. Gordon, DC Reid, and Don Gutteridge. She was Mississauga's first Poet Laureate (2015- 2017), and the Ontario representative to the League of Canadian Poets (2013-2016). Her poetry awards include the 2005 Ted PlantosMemorial Award. Her poems and translations have appeared in Queen’s Quarterly, ARC Poetry, The New York Times, China Daily, and on CBC Radio. She has read her work on Parliament Hill, at the Austin International Poetry Festival, at the Edmonton Poetry Festival and at universities in China, Canada and the United States.
Breaking into Blossom is a richly layered collection that powerfully showcases the poet’s keen insight and expansive spirit.
– Susan McMaster
Susan McMaster's 40-plus publications include poetry books, recently Grounded (Black Moss 2023), recordings, and anthologies. She has served as president of the League of Canadian poets and chair of its Feminist Caucus.
by Anna Yin
Beginning with a short song, ending in awakening reality, Breaking into Blossom unfolds a lyrical exploration of human experience, weaving personal struggles, societal issues, and the turbulence of history into a vast tapestry. Amidst various chaos, the collection seeks moments of serenity, harmony, romance and resilience. With an elegant balance of reflection and renewal, it captures the delicate interplay between hardship and hope, inviting readers to embrace truth through poetic inspiration and a deep wonder for the human spirit. Breaking into Blossom is more than an artistic expression—it is a meditation on transformation, revealing both reality and optimism even in life’s most uncertain seasons.
This book is scheduled for release in May 2025. It is now available for Pre-Order, and will be shipped as soon as we receive stock.
SKU: 9781989466902Categories: Poetry, Recent Releases, Spring 2025
