A tattered coat upon a stick represents both a summing-up and a continued breaking of new ground by a distinguished poet still at the top of his game after a long career. This full-bodied, symphonically-arranged collection encompasses Levenson’s early years in England, a sequence of poems that vividly surveys the geography along the length of the Trans-Canada Highway through to Vancouver, a poignant meditation on the life and music of Brahms, and humourous and ironic sketches concerning old age.