John Rives

John Rives was born in 1958 in Sault Ste. Marie Ontario, of American parents. He attended the University of Toronto from 1976 to 1983 and received undergraduate degrees in Geology and History. From 1982 to 1992 he served a life sentence at Millhaven and Collins Bay penitentiaries. Imprisonment exposed him to the shadow side of Canadian society, and led him to write poetry which attempts to uncover the indelible humanity of all prisoners. He is currently on life parole in Kingston, Ontario.

Awards
Salmon Arm Sonnet Contest, third prize, 1987.
Prison Arts Foundation Contest, first prize, poetry, 1991; second prize, poetry, 1990, 1993; award of merit, play, 1993; honourable mention, short story, 1991; special mention, short story, 1993.
God Uses Ink Christian Writing Awards, first prize, poetry, 1994.

Selected Publications
Dead Time: Poems from Prison. (Mini Mocho Press, 1989).
Shackles and Silence: Poems From Prison. (Mini Mocho Press, 1992).

Selected Anthologies
Words From Inside. (Prison Arts Foundation, 1990, 1991, 1992).
Sing for the Inner Ear. (UnMon, 1998).

Books in Print
Rives, John
Dead Time: Poems from Prison. Mini Mocho Press, 1989. $10.00 ISBN: 0-921980-00-0.
Shackles and Silence: Poems From Prison. Mini Mocho Press, 1992. $10.00 ISBN: 0-921980-08-6.

John Rives, 4095 Unity Road, RR #3, Odessa ON K0H 2H, (613) 386-5521
john.rives@sympatico.ca

 

Poet in the School
(Kingston)

phone: 613-386-5521

Rives is a poet and short story writer. Currently on life parole, he served time in two federal penitentiaries. June Callwood comments, "John Rives is not a lifer who happens to write poetry. He's a poet who happened to be in prison for ten years. The power and pain of Shackles and Silence are the redemptive voice of great and affecting poetry." He has written articles for a number of Christian publications, appeared on national television, and delivered lecture/readings at churches, universities, community colleges and high schools. Rives is the author of two books, Dead Time: Poems from Prison and Shackles and Silence: Poems from Prison His work focuses attention on the basic humanity of all segments of Canadian society in a emotive style which exposes the commonality of our inner selves.

Grade Levels: 9 - OAC

Fees: standard

Classroom Approach:
Informal lectures on the reality of prison life, punctuated by readings of his own and related poetry by other authors, provide the core for Rives' classroom presentations. He encourages questions from the students on a variety of subjects, from prison experience to publication, and is not adverse to frequent interruption. It helps if students are familiar with Rives' poetry prior to his visit. He will bring books for sale if this is in keeping with local school board policy. Circumstances permitting, the sharing of student writing should be an integral part every class. Rives believes that educating youth about prisons and prisoners is a humanizing process. To this end, stimulating students to write from their own experiences becomes a vital window to understanding the shared experience of people whose lives must seem inaccessible and frighteningly alien.