Accession MS COLL 00781 - Graeme Gibson Papers

24 boxes (3.3 metres)

Gift of Margaret Atwood, 2021

This accession of Graeme Gibson’s papers contains extensive material related to his books The Bedside Book of Birds (2005) and The Bedside Book of Beasts (2009), as well as material related to naturalist causes, writers’ organizations and correspondence. Papers related to Gibson’s long-term dedication to nature, preservation and birding include Graeme Gibson and Margaret Atwood’s role as honourary presidents of BirdLife International, minimal material related to the Pelee Island Bird Observatory, and broadly ranging material regarding Gibson’s connections and work in Cuba, most particularly with the Zapata interpretive station, WWF, and the Cuban National Museum of Natural History. Gibson’s two nature compendiums, The Bedside Book of Birds and The Bedside Book of Beasts are represented through drafts, research, permissions, proofs and promotional materials, most notably a selection of full-colour proofs with holograph editing for both texts. This accession also includes material related to Gibson’s involvement with writers’ organizations, such as the Writers’ Union of Canada, the Writers’ Trust of Canada and P.E.N Canada, as well as a wide-ranging amount of correspondence including correspondence with Sean Kane, which includes a number of that author’s drafts, as well as Farley Mowat, Mike Harris, and material related to Gibson’s interest in windfarms in Leamington, and the protection of doves in Grenada. In addition, there is material related to promotional events, including speeches given by Gibson, on both his career as a writer as well as nature preservation, as well as a very small amount of material related to Margaret Atwood.

No restrictions on access.

Material may be requested in person at the Fisher Library Reference Desk, or in advance using our online stack retrieval request form: https://aeon.library.utoronto.ca

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