Cedar Brant

Cedar Brant was born in a barn in northwest Montana. She spent her youth fascinated by wolves. This intrigue propelled her into biology, and a love affair with the land and culture of the rural west. For the past ten years, she has worked from Yellowstone to the empty valleys of Nevada, Oregon and Montana as a botanist and field biologist. She spends her summers living in a trailer in various rolling grasslands, counting and keying out plants, and honing her four-wheeling skills.
     
Her poetry and essays have appeared in Camas, and Poems Across the Big Sky. In 2007, she and several other Montana writers formed the traveling poetry troupe Bentgrass, which tours the state performing poetry and music, and hosting writing workshops. In 2008, they received a grant from Humanities Montana for their “On East” tour to the small ranching towns of eastern Montana where, among other honors, they were invited to tour a longhorn cattle operation, stay the night at the mayor's house, and attend northeastern Montana's “Schmeckfest,” a Mennonite sausage eating party. Bentgrass Poetry Troupe has self-published two volumes of poetry, Windfall Season (2007) and Night Corn (2010). Cedar Brant unpacks her bags in Missoula.

Hear Brant talk about her unusual childhood and her experiences with Bentgrass, and read a few poems during The Write Question, Thursday evening, June 16, at 6:30 (YPRadio.org) or 7:30 (MTPR.org).

Or click here to listen online.