Perez gets the Gerald Lampert Award
May 14th, 2025
Marc Perez has won the 2025 Gerald Lampert Memorial Award for his first published collection of poetry, Dayo (Brick Books $23.95).
Dayo is a Tagalog word referring to someone who exists in a place not their own; a wanderer, migrant worker, exile or simply a stranger. At its core, the poems in Dayo interrogate whether belonging can exist in a society suffused with violence.
Perez is a Filipino poet and writer based in Vancouver. In addition to Dayo, he is the author of the chapbook, Borderlands (
On Dayo, from the jurors: “Dayo is a collection that documents each moment as it passes. It is lush and animate in describing the mundane, gentle in its nostalgia and reflections of home, and sharp in its commentary on enclosures and borders. Each word is a seed of complex sensory images that sprout through the page to find connections across the book. These poems are elegant in the way they consider how fleeting each moment really is, while being deeply rooted in the possibilities of a good life. It is a nourishing and sturdy achievement.”
From the publisher: “Reflexive and lyrical, this collection embodies the true curiosity and tenacious spirit of a dayo seeking a place to replant, tend, and grow delicate roots.” 9781771316286
ABOUT THE PRIZE
Administered by the League of Canadian Poets, the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award is given in the memory of Gerald Lampert, an arts administrator who organized authors’ tours and took a particular interest in the work of new writers. The award recognizes a first book of poetry published by a Canadian. The award carries a $2,000 prize and is awarded annually in May.
Leave a Reply