Joan Crate

Joan Crate is a Canadian poet, novelist and creative writing teacher. Born in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, she taught literature and creative writing at Red Deer College, Alberta, for over 20 years. Her work draws on Indigenous cultures and prairie life; her first book of poetry, Pale as Real Ladies: Poems for Pauline Johnson, is regarded as a notable work, and her novel Breathing Water was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Book Award (Canada) and the Books in Canada First Novel Award. Her later poetry collection SubUrban Legends was awarded Book of the Year by the Writers' Guild of Alberta. Black Apple (Simon & Schuster) explores residential schools and prairie life in a lyrical, coming-of-age narrative.