Landbridge

Landbridge Synopsis

Contemporary Australian Poetry

"Australian poetry is rapidly finding a place in the context of an international poetics. It is considered... to be vital and unique, and one of the 'growth areas' of English-language poetry." - Thus John Kinsella begins his illuminating introduction to Landbridge, a substantial volume containing the work of 44 contemporary poets, many of them established 'names' in Australian poetry today (Les Murray, Peter Porter, John Tranter, Dorothy Hewett, Fay Zwicky, Robert Gray, Gig Ryan, Kevin Hart and Robert Adamson), as well as the names of those who have made relatively recent appearances (Alison Croggon, Peter Minter, Margie Cronin, Tracy Ryan, among many others).

All the poets whose work is included were actively writing at the time of compilation, and together, they represent "...aspects of the variable Australian voice. Whatever that might be, it's not fixed nor representative - diverse cultures emerge to make it a growing and interactive language." - (Kinsella)

This volume is exciting, forward-looking, and - while not claiming to be 'definitive' in any way - contains writing of such lasting significance that the European reader will return to it again and again.

"Kinsella's new anthology Landbridge is perhaps the best State-of-the-Art guide available."

Peter Forbes, Poetry Review Spring 1999