ALL WELCOME as the sydneypoetry.com bookclub convenes at 7pm on Monday 29 November upstairs at Berkelouw Books in Newtown (6 O'Connell St) to discuss Jennifer Harrison's Colombine.

What you need to do between now and then: read the book, develop an opinion.

This title was suggested by Martin Langford.

Note the new venue: Berkelouw Books, Newtown.
http://berkelouw.com.au/stores/newtown

ABOUT COLOMBINE
Via Blackpepper Press

How shall
we negotiate the stellate structure of snow
and the sepulchral nature of ash
whilst singing back the sirens of their vast seas
until the future is pulled from adriftness
and the empty kaleidoscope
is left to some other childish memory?

Perhaps we might visit the orange grove,
the pipped olive, the vacancy of marble
and reacquaint ourselves
with Europe’s multisyllabic kings and queens,
their tragic fleets and coincidental destinies—

but then, again...

[From ‘Swann’s Way’]

Colombine unusually contains two sets of ravishing new poems, the title sequence and another called Fugue.

The poems selected from Jennifer Harrison’s previous collections, from the Anne Elder Award-winning Michelangelo’s Prisoners to her fourth book, Folly & Grief, illustrate the depth of her talent.

Reviewers said of her work:

an impressive first collection - technically assured and intellectual in the best sense
Jennifer Strauss, Australian Book Review

an exhilarating collection from start to finish... a fabulous, wise, superbly crafted book. May it prosper
Alan Gould, Quadrant

what a wonderful, wonderful voice
Elizabeth Winfield, Famous Reporter

a heady mix of petrol fumes, CB radio, sex and hard-edged nostalgia celebrating adolescence in Sydney’s western suburbs
Tim Thorne, The Mercury

moving and highly impressive poetry
Greg McLaren, Southerly

a volume of immense compassion and razor-sharp observation, of dark under-edges and disturbing beauty
Ian McBryde, Five Bells

Folly & Grief is, quite simply, a brilliant book
Martin Duwell

A ravishing, stylish poet
Mark O’Flynn, Famous Reporter

This is how good poetry can be
Petra White, Blast

Jennifer Harrison is astonishing. She comes from a place that was previously unknown
Alan Loney

GET THE BOOK

Buy online from Blackpepper (I just did) or at your local good bookstore.

Jennifer Harrison
Colombine
ISBN 9781876044657
Published 2010
250 pgs
$28.95

ABOUT JENNIFER HARRISON
Jennifer Harrison was born in Liverpool, Sydney, in 1955, in a motorbike shop.

She began writing poetry while living in Boston, USA. Jennifer’s poetry has won many prizes including the 2003 NSW Women Writers National Poetry Prize, the 2004 Martha Richardson Poetry Medal and the 2004 Australian Book Review Poetry Prize. Her poetry has appeared in The Best Australian Poetry 2003, The Best Australian Poems 2004 and will feature in The Best Australian Poetry 2005.

More at Blackpepper.

ABOUT THE BOOKCLUB
A monthly meet-up to discuss a recently published title.
* FREE
* All welcome.
* We all read the same book.
* We meet on the last Monday of the month.
* We talk about the book.
* We choose another book for next month.
* Simple. Clean. Fun.