At first glance, he appears to be an average gentleman, but Brian Bartlett is far from ordinary. Brian Bartlett is a creative writing and literature professor at St. Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia and the author of a number of poetry books; his most recent publications include: The Watchmaker’s Table (2008) and Wanting the Day: Selected Poems (2003). On Thursday, October 30, Brian Bartlett came to Redeemer for a reading as part of the 2008-09 Poetry Reading Series, sponsored by Redeemer’s English Department. In this reading, Bartlett proved himself to be not only funny, but inspiring. His poetry reflects a number of themes gathered from daily life. Poems entitled “Long Distance and Bleach,” “Teaching with a Cold,” and “Foot Doctor for the Homeless” largely sketch the type of genre he deals with. When asked where his ideas come from, Bartlett replied that some of the poems stem from real experiences, while others come from newspaper headlines. He experiments with different forms in his poetry, even referring to some of his poems as “found poems.” Within the last twenty years, Bartlett has received a number of awards for his many decades’ worth of work. To one who understands the work that goes into each and every poem, these awards are well-deserved for a man who can make you laugh and reflect in the same poem.