📖THE IDEA OF AN ENTIRE LIFE-BILLY RAY BELCOURT- Publishing on September 9th, 2025 by McClelland & Stewart.

A new collection or poetry/writing from Belcourt. One of the most prominent indigenous writers brings us an intimate look at love, friendship, queerness, and grief.

Fans of Belcourt will not be disappointed.

Thanks to @netgalley and @mcclellandstewart

#books #poetry #canlit #billyraybelcourt
52s

I was so excited when I received this ARC on Neygalley. I've read almost all of Belcourt's other works, and I was so excited to see another poetry collection from the author. One again, the poems are insightful, tender, and full to the brim of quiet reflection and musings.
The sharing of the Queer Indigenous experience is so cleverly explored throughout the collection, and even more than that the poems themselves speak to the author's own unique voice and experiences. My favourite poem was "An Entire Life" written for Brenda Draney (one of my favourite contemporary painters).
Each poem has beautiful imagery and a simple way of storytelling that still packs a punch and leaves a lasting impression of tenderness.

“What if in the midst of too many objects I become one?”
This collection of poems was so beautifully written. I was enthralled the entire time I was reading.

The Idea of an Entire Life by Billy-Ray Belcourt
Pub Date

“To exist is a pain we have to keep bearing”

I’ve long admired Billy-Ray Belcourt’s writing and I was eagerly anticipating his new work and it did not disappoint. It delivers an emotional wallop. It’s lyrical, vulnerable, and thought provoking.

His poetry is hauntingly beautiful, and powerfully emotive, laced with the philosophical depth that is uniquely his. His poetry blends and balances pain and joy, despair and hope all the while expressing a longing for a world that is different - safe, free and liberating.

It is impossible to read this and not feel deeply impacted emotionally. I’ve already read this twice and I know I will pick it up again.

I find Belcourt increasingly tiresome, so many fuzzy similes and so much of the poetry feels filtered through theory.

Belcourt weaves words like magic. In short little snippets, he paints vivid pictures of his life. There were so many times, I had to pause and just sit with his words.
Fantastic.

This was the first book I’ve read by this author after wanting to read something from them for a while. I think that my rating is more of a me thing than the book thing, the poems were good, but I just don’t think I was the right audience.

Another fabulous collection of poetry by one of Canada's most talented writers. A fantastic look into queer indigeneity, identity, and belonging. Billy -Ray Belcourt has a way of reframing and analyzing contemporary indigenous identity in a way that strives far beyond its time. An essential poetry collection for contemplative minds.

Belcourt's reflective, deeply personal, and academic style come through in each poem, portraying life and identity in a way that challenges any structures of power that might call it 'marginal.' It is whole, aware of the past, aware of how colonialist history has framed and distorted indigenous life, and pulling out those roots to disclose them in defiance. Political and personal, lyrical and astute, occasionally funny, frequently persuasive.

I'm such a huge fan of Billy-Ray Belcourt. His words cut right to the core every time. And, the academic in me always gets so much out of his reference notes too. This is a collection I will revisit many times.

I always enjoy Billy-Ray's poetry work. It's succinct, insightful and lyrically confronting. Like always he gives me a lot to think about and reflect as a settler on Turtle Island.

I'm going to go preorder my copy now because there was so much I wanted to highlight but because of the format the Netgalley Shelf wouldn't let me.

This was one of my most anticipated 2025 releases and I absolutely loved it. Billy-Ray Belcourt did it again and The Idea of An Entire Life made me cry. These poems are written beautifully and bring such depth and insight to his experiences as a Queer Cree man. My fave poem was 20th-Century Cree History. I will definitely be reading this collection again!