Cirrus@Austlit

'From long narrative lines to fine-boned, lyrical loops and ties that bind these poems into place, Richard James Allen has taken risks with language that mark this as his most adventurous and significant book to date. --Anthony Lawrence

'Allen's subject is being itself, and the way our biological and mental dimensions interact, with human intelligence and love being the unifying forces for this interaction. --Adam Aitken' (Publication summary)

There has been quite a hiatus since our last issue of Mascara. While changes in our editorial staff may have contributed, primarily this reflects the trauma that comes from being targeted for our literary activism. In regressive times, the naming of ‘whiteness’ or ‘class’ is acutely threatening to the perceived entitlements and fatigued legacies of privilege. But it has also been a time of change, of dissent and solidarity for the values we cherish: equality, endurance, cultural respect. (Michelle D’Souza, Editorial introduction)