Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two families of animals: the Old World porcupines of family Hystricidae, and the New World porcupines of family Erethizontidae. Both families belong to the infraorder Hystricognathi within the profoundly diverse order Rodentia and display superficially similar coats of rigid and/or semi-rigid quills which are modified hairs composed of keratin. Despite this, the two groups are distinct from one another and are not closely related to each other within the Hystricognathi. The largest species of porcupine is the third-largest living rodent in the world after the capybara and beaver.
Jane Urquhart, Order of Canada OC is a Canadian novelist and poet born in Geraldton, Ontario. She is the internationally acclaimed author of seven award-winning novels, three books of poetry and numerous short stories. As a novelist, Urquhart is well known for her evocative style which blends history with the present day. Her first novel, The Whirlpool, gained her international recognition when she became the first Canadian to win France's prestigious Prix du Meilleur Livre Etranger. Her subsequent novels were even more successful. Away, published in 1993, won the Trillium Award and was a national bestseller. In 1997, her fourth novel, The Underpainter, won the Governor General's Literary Award.
Irving Peter Layton, OC was a Romanian-born Canadian poet. He was known for his "tell it like it is" style which won him a wide following, but also made him enemies. As T. Jacobs notes in his biography (2001), Layton fought Puritanism throughout his life:
Layton's work had provided the bolt of lightning that was needed to split open the thin skin of conservatism and complacency in the poetry scene of the preceding century, allowing modern poetry to expose previously unseen richness and depth.
Kildare Robert Eric Dobbs was a Canadian short story and travel writer.
Patricia Kathleen "P. K." Page, was best known as a Canadian poet, though the citation as she was inducted as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada reads "poet, novelist, script writer, playwright, essayist, journalist, librettist, teacher and artist." She was the author of more than thirty published books that include poetry, fiction, travel diaries, essays, children's books, and an autobiography.
The North American porcupine, also known as the Canadian porcupine, is a large quill-covered rodent in the New World porcupine family. It is the second largest rodent in North America, after the North American beaver. The porcupine is a caviomorph rodent whose ancestors crossed the Atlantic from Africa to Brazil 30 million years ago, and then migrated to North America during the Great American Interchange after the Isthmus of Panama rose 3 million years ago.
Susan Swan is a Canadian author. Born in Midland, Ontario, she studied at McGill University. Her list of works includes The Western Light (2012), What Casanova Told Me (2004), and The Wives of Bath (1993). Swan's latest novel is The Dead Celebrities Club (2019). The Globe and Mail called it a timely tale of greed and corruption, worthy of the age. The Wives of Bath was made into the film Lost and Delirious in 2001, starring Piper Perabo, Jessica Paré, and Mischa Barton. The film was listed in the official selection in the Sundance Film Festival. Her first novel, The Biggest Modern Woman of the World, about a Canadian giantess who exhibited with PT Barnum is being made into a television series.
James Crerar Reaney, was a Canadian poet, playwright, librettist, and professor, "whose works transform small-town Ontario life into the realm of dream and symbol." Reaney won Canada's highest literary award, the Governor General's Award, three times and received the Governor General's Award for Poetry or Drama for both his poetry and his drama.
Elizabeth Grace Hay is a Canadian novelist and short story writer.
Robert Duer Claydon Finch was a Canadian poet and academic. He twice won Canada's top literary honor, the Governor General's Award, for his poetry.
Caroline Adderson is a Canadian novelist and short story writer. She has published four novels, two short story collections and two books for young readers.
Keath Fraser is a Canadian fiction author. He lived in London from 1970 to 1973, where he studied at the University of London and earned his Ph.D. He later taught English in Calgary, Alberta, Canada for five years as a tenured professor. He then stopped teaching to become a full-time author.
Terry Griggs is a Canadian author. Her book of short stories Quickening was a finalist at the 1991 Governor General's Awards, and she won the Marian Engel Award in 2003.
Richard Daley Outram was a Canadian poet. Often regarded as a poet's poet, he wrote eleven commercially published books of poetry in addition to the many collections of poetry and prose published under the imprint of the Gauntlet Press. In 1999 he won the City of Toronto Book Award for his sequence of poems Benedict Abroad.
Ven Begamudré is a Canadian poet, short story writer and novelist. He was born in Bangalore, India and moved with his family to Canada when he was six. During his writing career, he has been a part of six writers-in-residence. He currently divides his time between western Canada and the island of Bali.
Juanita Growing Thunder Fogarty is a Native American, Assiniboine Sioux bead worker and porcupine quill worker. She creates traditional Northern Plains regalia.
Rosemary Kilbourn is a Canadian printmaker, illustrator and stained glass artist known for her work in wood engraving.
Shane Neilson is a Canadian physician, author and poet.
Cynthia Holz is an American-born Canadian author. She graduated in English in 1971 from Queens College, City University of New York. She moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1976 while working as the Canadian correspondent for Business Week magazine. She began publishing short stories in 1980 in literary journals and anthologies such as The Malahat Review and The Fiddlehead. She has written essays and book reviews for The Globe and Mail, the Ottawa Citizen, Quill & Quire and the National Post. She has published five novels and one collection of short stories. Her latest novel, Benevolence, was released in Spring 2011 by Knopf Canada.
Robyn Sarah is a Canadian poet and short story writer.
