'When considering the rich and varied stream of submissions from Australia and New Zealand Aotearoa, I was struck by how many were so universal and timeless both in theme and style that they transcended any geographical boundaries except perhaps that of our global community. I deliberately elicited a broad sweep of poetic voices, from the emerging to the established to the highly renowned, crowned by the prodigious talent of David Malouf, whom I had the honour of interviewing.' (Introduction)