Month: August 2016

My report on last Wednesday’s launch of New Sea Land included a few photos from the launch – now, here are some more!

(All photos by Mary McCallum except for the first, which is by Rohan Molloy. Thank you both!)

How to buy New Sea Land

The launch crew: Harvey Molloy, me, Mary McCallum, Paul Stewart

Harvey launches, George listens in

Sue and Lindsay in the foreground, Niki and (I think) George from Ekor at the back left

A beautifully put together display of New Sea Lands – thanks, Niki and George!

One side of the audience…

… and another side of the audience

The height of elegance: Mark and Julia at the launch

Photographer (possibly a secret agent) lurks behind pile of interesting books to capture photo of launch

I’m planning to post some more photos from my book launch, but today is National Poetry Day, and that takes precedence! There are heaps of events on round the country. Here are three I’m involved in.

Lovely people, lovely bookshop

Thanks to everyone who helped make this launch a great event – Helen Rickerby for recommending Ekor Bookshop to me in the first place,Niki Ward and George for running the event, Mary McCallum and Paul McCallum Stewart of Mākaro Press for accepting, designing and publishing the book, Harvey Molloy for launching it, Claire Beynon for the lovely cover images, William Carden-Horton for the interior images, and everyone who took part in the launch or sent apologies!

This is a cover version of “Possessed to Skate”. I call it “Poised to Sign”.

(Thanks also to Mary for the photos used in this post. You can find more of Mary’s photos of the launch here: https://www.facebook.com/mary.mccallum.566/posts/10210587683551982)

There were a few people I barely got a chance to talk to at the launch – to all of you, thanks for attending, and I hope we’ll catch up soon!

No rest for the wicked, though – well, a little rest, but then I’ll be taking poems from “New Sea Land” for a spin at three events on National Poetry Day this Friday:

Tim Jones, Mary McCallum and Paul Stewart. Poet was going for Byronic air of mystery – didn’t quite achieve it.

… and if you’re in Wellington, you are most welcome to come along! Here are all the details:

You’re warmly invited to the launch of my new poetry collection, “New Sea Land”, published by Mākaro Press, at Te Aro’s new bookshop, Ekor Bookshop and Cafe at 17b College St opposite Moore Wilson’s (see map).

The launch is on Wednesday 24 August, starting at 6pm with the traditional drinks and nibbles. The formalities will start at 6.30pm, with the book to be launched by Harvey Molloy.

Memorial
for Jonathan Franzen

Arms outstretched, the novelist
stands amid the ruins of nature.

It’s a curated nature: his
cultivated rescue garden,

a scoop of hills and plains,
wind large among dead pines and dying needles.

He has gathered all the birds, these valiant
survivors of drought and storm

into one remaining protected preserve:
the last refuge of wildness, this circle of life

kept smoothly spinning by selfless human cogs,
volunteers who’ve let the world go to hell

in the service of saving a fragment. This
is their last best hope, their final stand.

But climate, the revenger’s tragedy of the commons,
cannot be bought off or set aside.

Their predator-proof fences, their best
intentions, have no effect on fire or air.

Lightning sparks a firestorm, trees
adding their carbon to the oversaturated sky.

Birds roast in the updrafts, volunteers
are crisped below. In the aftermath,

the novelist arrives, surveys
the ruins of the little world he’s made,

and stretches out his arms. Tiny skeletons
flutter to perch on his scarecrow bones.

Credit note: This poem is included in my new collection New Sea Land (Mākaro Press, 2016). It is previously unpublished.

Tim says: Why is this poem addressed to Jonathan Franzen? Because he wrote this article for The New Yorker in 2015:

• Carbon Capture: Has climate change made it harder for people to care about conservation?

The central thesis of this article, as I read it, is that because contemplating the likely effects of climate change is too depressing, and because taking action on it is too hard, it’s better (or at least, it’s better for Jonathan Franzen) to focus on try to save what he’s most interested in – birds.

I’m a big fan of wildlife conservation and bird sanctuaries – on our offshore islands, on mainland islands, and maybe even nationwide at some point. But to imagine that birds can be exempted from the effects of climate change is short-sighted and self-defeating.

Fortunately, New Zealand groups such as Forest & Bird are well aware of the risk climate change poses to New Zealand’s birds and forests. Jonathan Franzen’s love of birds does him credit,and I’d love to see him place that in a wider context.

National Poetry Day is coming up on Friday 26 August – two days after my new collection New Sea land is launched.

There are events all round the country, including a whole bunch in the Hutt Valley and Wellington.

I’m due to take part in three events on the day, the first two organised by New Sea Land publisher Mākaro Press:

• 12noon-1.15pm: Poets in the Park: A National Poetry Day Event: Glover Park, Ghuznee St Wellington
• 2pm-3.15pm: Buckets of Poets: A National Poetry Day Event: Bucket Fountain, Cuba Mall, Wellington
• 7.30pm-10pm: “Poems of the Season and the Land”. This event, at St Mary’s Church, 56 Woburn Rd, Lower Hutt (see map), features a great lineup of poets. Check out the poster below!

I’ll have my new poetry collection New Sea Land available for sale at these events.