At long last the People have spoken, two winners have emerged, both co-equal in the esteem of public and peers, whose vision is ever wise, democratic and mysteriously accurate (on the other hand, dg has been known to have counted the votes inaccurately). The voting was close, and several villanelles came in for exuberant praise from their supporters. Some people voted so many times it was difficult to keep count. But this year’s winners are Lynne Quarmby for her science villanelle “Antonj van Leeuwenhoek” and Kim Aubrey for her “Canadian Shield, or a middle-aged woman’s thoughts turn to the cottage.” May they wear their crowns with appropriate dignity and pride as befitting winners of one of North American’s most prestigious literary prizes (winners are expected to wear their crowns, without fail, for a whole year, even in the shower; they are also required to appear at promotional events for Numéro Cinq at their own expense and appear in public wearing sandwich boards advertising the magazine and various licensed products including our line of Blue Dog figurines, our High School Essays Tailored For You subsidiary, and the ever popular Gary Garvin ballroom dancing instructional CD).

Count the votes for yourselves here. Discrepancies will be rigorously investigated and illegalities or miscounts will be prosecuted to the extent of the law.

View the complete entry list here.

Read the winning villanelles below.

dg

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Antonj van Leeuwenhoek

By Lynne Quarmby

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Under a lens and good light

the draper viewed threads of linen and wool

Such wonders he brought to sight

Tartar from teeth whet his appetite

for microbes that wiggle and swim

under a lens and good light

In a vial of pond scum was much to delight

Spirogyra! Volvox! Vorticella!

such wonders he brought to sight

Dissections and diagrams, yes Antonj was bright

Fleas have fleas he discovered

under a lens and good light

In pulsing blood flowed the erythrocyte

Add rainwater – see them explode!

such wonders he brought to sight.

Shivers and shudders for one parasite

Yes, it was he discovered the spermatocyte

under a lens and good light

such wonders he brought to sight

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Canadian Shield,

or A middle-aged woman’s thoughts turn to the cottage

By Kim Aubrey

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In spring I long for an outcropping of rock,

pink and gray granite sparked with quartz, stroked with moss

and an eager puppy leaping off the dock.

To brave the cool lake, cast off shoes and socks,

rest against sun-warmed boards, forget winter’s dross,

in spring I long for an outcropping of rock

where lichens and leafy liverwort run amok

cushion and tickle bear cubs’ curious paws,

while an eager puppy leaps from the dock,

paddles out to chase a sprawling flock

of geese that flap and honk their way across.

In spring I long for an outcropping of rock.

Overhead turkey vultures tilt with a hawk,

guard their new-laid nest from potential loss.

Below, an eager puppy jumps off the dock.

To tramp through the woods on a long longed-for walk,

touch the rough bark of pines, their fresh green floss,

in spring I long for an outcropping of rock

and a sleepy puppy curled up on the dock.