Member Profile

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Sally S. Ito

Photo: Warren Cariou

Sally Ito is a witer and translator. She was born in Taber, Alberta, and currently lives in Winnipeg. She has published three books of poetry, Frogs in the Rain Barrel, A Season of Mercy, and Alert to Glory, as well as a collection of short stories called Floating Shore.  In 2018, she published a cultural memoir, The Emperor's Orphans.  Ito has also translated and published the Japanese children's poet Misuzu Kaneko by drawing on her years of study in Japan and experience of translating contemporary Japanese poetry. She teaches creative writing in Winnipeg and is a former blog contributor to the multicultural children's literature blog and website, PaperTigers.  

City:
Winnipeg
Province:
Manitoba
Genre:
Fiction, Creative Non-fiction, Poetry, Literary poetry translation

Publications

Floating Shore. Toronto: Mercury Press, 1998.
Frogs in the Rain Barrel. Madeira Park, BC: Nightwood Editions, 1995.
A Season of Mercy. Madeira Park, BC: Nightwood Editions, 1999
Alert to Glory. Turnstone, 2011
Are You an Echo: The Lost Poetry of Misuzu Kaneko. Chin Music Press, 2016
The Emperor's Orphans. Turnstone Press, 2018

Awards

Howard O’Hagan Award for Best Short Story Collection by an Albertan for Floating Shore, 1999.
First runner-up, Milton Acorn People's Memorial Award Competition for Frogs in the Rain Barrel, 1997.
Short Listed for the Danuta Gleed Award for Floating Shore, 1999
Short Listed for the City of Edmonton Book Prize for Floating Shore, 1999
Short Listed for the Milton Acorn Poetry Prize for Frogs in the Rain Barrel, 1996
Award of Merit for Canadian Christian Writing Award for Alert to Glory, 2012
Short-listed for Alexander Kennedy Isbister Award for Nonfiction for The Emperor's Orphans, 2019
Links:
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/sally.ito
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Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/sallyito/
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Twitter
https://twitter.com/SallySIto
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Eligible for National Public Readings Program:
Yes

WITS

Are you available for public presentations and/or workshops:
Yes
Presentation Description

I can do presentations on Japanese children's poet Misuzu Kaneko to children, and can do presentations on Japanese Canadian history using my memoir, The Emperor's Orphans to junior high and high school students and adults.  I can also do presentations on literary translation from Japanese to English, and also more generally on the translation of poetry.

Presentation Length:
One hour
Grades:
I can do presentations for elementary aged children, junior high and high school students, and adults.
Audience Size:
10-30
Presenation:
TWUC Standard Rate
Workshop Description:

I can do haiku poetry workshops, translation workshops, and fiction/non-fiction workshops at the basic beginner level. 

Workshop Length:
1-3 hours depending on kind of workshop
Workshop Intended Audience:
Adults
Workshop Audience Size:
8-15
Workshop Fee:
TWUC Standard Fee
Are you available for school visits?:
Yes
School Presentation Description:

I can do presentations on Japanese children's poet Misuzu Kaneko to children, and can do presentations on Japanese Canadian history using my memoir, The Emperor's Orphans to junior high and high school students and adults.  I can also do presentations on literary translation from Japanese to English, and also more generally on the translation of poetry.

School Presentation Length:
1 hour
School Intended Audience:
Elementary/Junior High/High School
School Audience Size:
Average classroom size
School Presentation Fee:
TWUC Standard Fee
Interested in participating in the Union’s Ontario Writers-in-the-Schools program:
Yes
Interested in participating in the Northern Ontario WITS program:
Yes

Equity Initiative

As part of the Union’s Equity Implementation Plan, we are committed to increasing awareness of authors who are Black, Indigenous, racialized, LGBTQI2S, or living with a disability. This author identifies as:

  • Black, Indigenous, and/or racialized