Janet Read was born in Toronto.  She has an MA in the philosophy of art focusing on Merleau-Ponty and Ricoeur and phenomenology.  Her novel Wilberforce Street is set in the historical black settlement in Oro Township in Simcoe County Ontario.  It is accompanied by a teacher's guide. Janet is a practicing artist, exhibiting most recently at the Whitby Station and Robert McLaughlin public galleries.  She is represented in various galleries in Ontario and in Quebec.Janet read recently at Poetry Cobourg and has led poetry and bookmaking workshops for elementary and secondary students.