Yes, three new books! I had a wonderful time at Poetry at the Pub Monday night. It was the launch of the book Notes for the Translators, the work of 142 Australian and New Zealand poets, and a lot of excellent poetry was read and talked about.

In between breaks I managed to speak to three poets, all very devoted to their craft. I have long admired the work of Jan Dean and I now possess three copies of With One Brush to sell through the co-operative. Jan’s collection “ranges from lyricism to dramatic monologues, from humour to domestic tragedies and pleas for world peace.”

I met Mark for the first time last night and he graciously gave me three copies for the garret. Here’s a bit about Mark. “Mark Tredinnick’s contribution to literature spans a remarkable range of forms and styles. His poetry has won many major awards: the Newcastle, Josephine Ulrick (second), Gwen Harwood and Blake Poetry prizes, to name a few. Mark has worked as a publisher, editor, and (once upon a time) a lawyer.”

I also had a wonderful chat with Janette Hoppe about the difficulty of finding time to write with children. I struggled with two children eleven years apart! Janette has five! I don’t know how she manages it. She is currently working on her second collection. I grabbed three copies of her first for my blue, green and white cardboard box which is in disguise as the Starving in a Garret bookshop. Her bilingual poetry is a must read and as she writes herself: “I am able to express so many more ideas, thoughts and feelings in a few short words of Maori than in a whole verse of English.”

The Starving in a Garret box goes with me wherever I go so contact me below or by email lakelady2282 at hotmail.com to purchase any of the books here. More to follow!