by Keri Hulme
First published 1992
Keri Hulme, who won the Booker Prize for The Bone People, presents her second poetry collection in three distinct movements. She opens with "Fishing the Olearia Tree," where natural processes unfold through rich, moving verse. The collection's heart lies in "Against Small Evil Voices," where Maori traditions weave through chants, stories, and memories that celebrate family bonds and women's strength. Hulme closes with "Winesongs," offering more relaxed lyrics that flow with attractive expression and seemingly effortless craft. Her poetry breaks conventional boundaries, mixing verse with prose passages while maintaining a romantic sensibility and sophisticated awareness of how language behaves. The work spans from intimate family moments to broader cultural themes, all filtered through Hulme's distinctive voice that honors both personal experience and ancestral wisdom.
Genres: literary-fiction, 20th-century, poetry, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family
Setting: Maori
Period: 20th-Century, 21st-Century
66 pages · Paperback · Oxford University Press