Poetry

Caroline Kizer, Pulitzer Prize winner and former director of the literary section of the National Endowment for the Arts, has stated: "I believe Middleton is the finest living poet writing in English. If this were a just world, he would have the Nobel Prize." Guy Davenport writes that his "rare genius for exact observation and metaphysical wit as given us for over half a century now poems of such brilliant craftsmanship and exacting sensibility that a few critics only have dared to assess their magic. He is an incomparable stylist,... read more

"We have always depended on poets to speak more beautifully, mor powerfully, than anyone else, on behalf of peace and justice. PRESENT/TENSE is a wonderful collection of poetry that fulfills that promise. It its pages we find poets who move us profoundly and lift our spirits." - Howard Zinn

The Celts have always loved words. They called their earliest bards 'Carpenters of Song' and 'People of Skill', and established a tradition which began with the intricate magical poems of Taliesin in the 6th century AD, continued in the rich Medieval works of Dafydd ap Gwilym and Rhys Goch, and in the 19th century work by Gerald Manley Hopkins, and can be found in the of 20th century work of writers such as R.J. Stewart, Robin Williamson and Catherine Fisher as well as a legion of other Celtic song-smiths, who have carried the torc... read more

Foreward by Ken Wiwa. 'A heartfelt, tremendously moving and hugely powerful testament to a great man." - William Boyd First published 2005.

An Anthology of the Best Poets and Poetry Since 1900

Though The King of Suburbia is his first collection of poems, Iggy McGovern is already a very well known name in Irish poetry, having published many of the witty, playful but always thoughtful poems in this book in magazines and journals. A physicist at Trinity College Dublin, McGovern brings a scientist's keen eye for observation to bear on a wide range of topics - from his childhood in Northern Ireland to contemporary Irish life and, in particular, family life in the Dublin suburbs First published 2005.

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Here are all of Stevens' published books of poetry, side-by-side for the first time with the haunting lyrics of his later years and early work that traces the development of his art. From the rococo inventiveness of Harmonium, his first volume (including such classics as "Sunday Morning", "Peter Quince at the Clavier", and "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird"), through "Notes Toward a Supreme Fiction", "Esthetique du Mal", "The Auroras of Autumn", and the other large-scale masterpieces of his middle years, to the austere final... read more

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There are poems in this collection about Dutch Masters, the remembered voice of a deceased soprano, a waterfall, ancient Chinese artefacts, victims of the World Wars, kites and flowers; but each piece is sensitively imbued not only with the poet's awareness of impending death but also with the incorrigible fragility of life. While Dallas is at home in a number of different modes, her high regard for literary tradition as a form of spiritual realism makes her eminently readable as a disciplined watcher of the seasons.

What is your favourite poem? Who is it by? Why do you love it? When do you recite it? How does it make you feel? A poem's ability to create an emotional response is quite remarkable. A favourite poem may capture something everyday and domestic, or try and answer one of life's big questions. Our Favourite Poems is a quite different anthology, because it asks the New Zealand public, 'Which piece of verse moves you the most?' Canvassing the country, New Zealanders are voting for their favourite poem, with the top 100 or so poems being... read more

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Denis Glover is one of New Zealand's outstanding literary figures. This first comprehensive biography investigates the turbulent life of this celebrated poet., typographer, publisher, wit, sportsman and war hero, and offers an illuminating portrayal of the New Zealand cultural scene during its most vital decades. Denis Glover: His Life presents a multi-faceted individual with an almost Elizabethan breadth of talents and enthusiasms, whose boistrous, bibulous, aggressive, unpredictable, extroverted and frequently scandalous behavio... read more

Published to coincide with Montana Poetry Day, this anthology brings together the 100 favourite poems of 100 well known New Zealanders - with a twist. The 100 Kiwis were approached by the Amnesty International group at Auckland Girls Grammar and asked to include a letter explaining why their chosen poem was dear to them, hence the title. The replies are astounding, with moving letters from such luminaries as Dave Dobbyn, Dame Sylvia Cartwright, Mike Chunn, Jacqui Brown, Sir Bob Jones and Lesley Max, accompanied by a treasure tr... read more

Life Songs: Readings for Milestones contains a selection of readings suitable for all life's celebrations and milestones. From the classic and traditional to the modern and humourous, it contains readings for naming and christening ceremonies, birthday and anniversary celebrations, funerals and memorial services as well as a selection of readings suitable for weddings and commitment ceremonies. A companion volume to the successful Heart Songs - Readings on Weddings, this new book acts as a stand-alone compendium of quotes, readings... read more

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Taller When Prone is Les Murray's first volume of new poems since 2006's The Biplane Houses. With characteristic grace and dexterity, these poems combine a mastery of form with a matchless ear for the Australian vernacular. Many evoke rural life - its rhythms and rituals, the natural world, the landscape and the people who have shaped it.

The collection exhibits both Murray's unfailing grace as a writer and his ability to write in any voice, style and genre. The suite of works include, story poems, word-plays, history to myth-making and more. The subjects range from Asperger's Syndrome to Germaine Greer to Japanese sword blades.

First published 1995.