Dr. George Elliott Clarke, O.C., O.N.S., Ph.D., is a native of Windsor, Nova Scotia, and is the Poet Laureate of Toronto, Ontario, where he teaches Canadian literature at the University of Toronto. His prize-winning books comprise poetry—Whylah Falls (1990), Execution Poems (2000), and Blues and Bliss (2008)—and a novel, George & Rue (2004). His daughter, Aurelia, has shortened “Papa” to “Pup,” which is his most cherished title.