'Three flags fly above the Baptist church
ready for July Fourth. The sign proclaims
THIS SUNDAY: PATRIOTIC SERMON'
'The poems in (Un)belonging explore physical and psychological spaces, examining the consequences of a life lived on three continents, defined by separation from homelands and loved ones, shaped by departure and return, and the evolution and multiplication of identity. Throughout the collection, the setting continually moves from Australia to Ireland to the United States, making stops in England, Iceland, Greece, Italy, New Zealand and Slovakia. O’Reilly’s poetry engages with a range of concerns and obsessions, including identity, belonging, expatriation, immigration, exile, ancestry, landscape, alienation, homesickness, suburbia, fatherhood, nostalgia, death and grief … finding beauty, contentment and joy amidst an elusive quest for home.'
'Who better to explore the notion of ‘home’ than a wanderer? Nathanael O’Reilly has travelled on five continents; he’s originally from Victoria, now settled in Texas, and in-between spent time in England, Ireland, Germany and the Ukraine. (Un)belonging is his sixth collection, and followers of his work might be familiar with particular themes of interest for O’Reilly, even based on the book titles alone: Preparations for Departure, Distance, and Symptoms of Homesickness. All puns intended, he is on familiar territory writing about unfamiliar territory.' (Introduction)
'Who better to explore the notion of ‘home’ than a wanderer? Nathanael O’Reilly has travelled on five continents; he’s originally from Victoria, now settled in Texas, and in-between spent time in England, Ireland, Germany and the Ukraine. (Un)belonging is his sixth collection, and followers of his work might be familiar with particular themes of interest for O’Reilly, even based on the book titles alone: Preparations for Departure, Distance, and Symptoms of Homesickness. All puns intended, he is on familiar territory writing about unfamiliar territory.' (Introduction)
