Deep Breath (Frog Hollow Press, 2021)
Deep Breath is a chapbook of longer poems, many of them narrative.
Dark Fire (Ironing Board Press, 2021)
Dark Fire tells the true story of the Drews and Lawrences, two young farm families horrifically massacred in the struggle to form a tobacco growers' union in 1920s Kentucky. Painstakingly researched and written with rare empathy, Dark Fire invites readers into a detailed recreation of the brief, incandescent lives of four adults and seven children whose murder has long been shrouded in mystery and collective silence.
Earth Day in Leith Churchyard: Poems in Search of Tom Thomson (Seraphim Editions, 2015)
As the title suggests, this book examines the life & work of painter Tom Thomson through poetry. At times the speaker in the poem is Thomson himself, & at others s/he is someone looking at Thomson or one of his paintings. This book was short-listed for a Hamilton Literary Award for Poetry in 2016.
The Literate Thief: Selected Poems (Larkspur Press, 2006)
This volume of selected poems was illustrated by Wesley Bates, & printed & bound by Gray Zeitz & his team at Larkspur Press in Monterey, Kentucky. It contains poems from Rule's first four books.
The Weight of Flames (The St. Thomas Poetry Series, 1998)
The St. Thomas Poetry Series has its roots in St. Thomas Anglican Church in Toronto. David Kent & Hugh Anson Cartwright conceived their series as a place where poets could explore spiritual matters. That is the theme which informs The Weight of Flames.
Gardening at the Mouth of Hell (West Meadow Press, 1996)
Illustrated with engravings by Wesley Bates, of West Meadow Press, Rule's third book is divided into three sections: The Many-Forked Tree is inspired by her early life; Fired to a Second Permanence is about various historic people & places; & The Answer to Everything is inspired by Rule's adult life.
Private Places (Brandstead Press, 1990)
Illustrated & printed by Gerard Brender à Brandis on his handmade paper, this chapbook comprises three poems about Ireland.
Full Light Falling (Image Publishing,1988)
The poems in Full Light Falling are connected by the fact that they are all about, or set in, Hamilton, Ontario.
Frames of Mind (Brandstead Press,1985)
Bernadette Rule's first book came about when Gerard Brender à Brandis of Brandstead Press asked her for short poems to pair with his engravings. He then made the paper, hand printed the poems & engravings, & bound the book.