Q&A With John Brady McDonald 

I am delighted that Mickey Mikkelson connected me with John Brady McDonald who has a poetry collection available now titled The Glass Lodge. John also has a nonfiction book, Carrying It Forward: ESSAYS FROM KISTAHPINÂNIHK. 

https://shadowpawpress.com/product/the-glass-lodge/

Q: John, would you like to tell us about some of the poems you wrote in The Glass Lodge & what made you want to write a book of poetry?

A: These poems were all written well over 20 years ago, when I was a young Indigenous kid from the streets, struggling to make sense of a harrowing world around me and hoping to find a lyrical release to the pain, trauma and hopelessness I felt as an addict and Residential School survivor. These poems are the chronicle of a street kid from the ‘hood, fighting to find his place in a world bent on crushing him.

Q: Could you give a brief description of Carrying It Forward: ESSAYS FROM KISTAHPINÂNIHK & what made you want to write about this subject?

A: “Carrying It Forward: Essays from Kistahpinanihk” is my award-winning collection of essays published by Wolsak and Wynn. It is a deeper look at my life, my views on Indigenous issues, and the sharing of the wonderfully passionate family I am blessed to be a part of. This book has allowed me to expand on thoughts and narratives that could not be adequately described through poetry. It was a Finalist for the 2023 Lambda Literary Award and it won the 2024 Saskatchewan Book Awards for best Non-Fiction and the Indigenous People’s Writing Award.

Q: What emotions & lessons do you hope readers feel & learn after reading your poetry?

A: I would hope that readers take away a sense of empathy, compassion and dignity for those whose lives have led them to the streets, to the bottle, to addictions and to poverty. Too often, particularly in my own hometown, the homeless are seen not as humans, but as a “problem” that needs to be “dealt with.” Street people are dehumanized and ridiculed, and people quickly forget that they are humans, deserving of basic human dignity.

Q: Are you currently writing another book of poems, a fiction novel or a nonfiction book like Carrying It Forward: ESSAYS FROM KISTAHPINÂNIHK?

A:  I am currently completing a collection of poetry. I have two new books currently out, and I have a new poetry collection slated for release in 2025. I’m also working on a novel which I started in 2001 but shelved for two decades while concentrating on poetry.