'Drawing inspiration from a range of fictional detectives, Anne M. Carson's 'The Detective's Chair' is a whimsical collection of 32 short prose poems which suggests a creative correlation between problem solving and the crafting of a poem. In a playful homage to these colourful fictional sleuths, Carson focuses in on the nature of creativity itself, acknowledging that it's often in these moments of reflective 'sitting,' away from the bustle of clue collecting and intentional effort, that the pieces of the 'solution' - be it crime or poem - might start coming together. Each poem is beautifully illustrated with delicate line drawings by Rene Carrasco, bringing to life the different space of reflective possibility for that detective.'(Publication summary)
'Poetry has many pleasures, and, as quite a few of us might suspect, an almost equal share of pains. But every so often, every so often, a book comes along that panders to my desire to loll about reading a detective novel, one hand dipping into the box of chocs and riffling the paper cups to come upon an orange cream, which is my favourite. I am aware, out of the corner of my eye, of the literature outlining the comfort of a rules-based, escapist genre, where the murder victim is rarely, if ever, someone you have come to like. But it wasn’t until I read Carson’s “Reflections on writing The Detective’s Chair” at the back of this book, that I twigged that what I am really liking is the almost preternatural intuition of the crime solvers.' (Introduction)
'In trying to pin down the inspiration for where a poem might come from, the late Dorothy Porter (to whom this book is dedicated) once related the story that one of her students, a murderer in Long Bay gaol, suggested that a novel could be told in haiku. This lead her, apparently, to the germ of an idea – a crime novel told in verse, which became The Monkey’s Mask. Aesthetic ideas can come from the most unlikely sources, even Long Bay gaol. Anne Carson has used this notion as the catalyst for an exploration into famous fictional detectives told in verse, or more specifically, prose poetry.'(Introduction)
'In trying to pin down the inspiration for where a poem might come from, the late Dorothy Porter (to whom this book is dedicated) once related the story that one of her students, a murderer in Long Bay gaol, suggested that a novel could be told in haiku. This lead her, apparently, to the germ of an idea – a crime novel told in verse, which became The Monkey’s Mask. Aesthetic ideas can come from the most unlikely sources, even Long Bay gaol. Anne Carson has used this notion as the catalyst for an exploration into famous fictional detectives told in verse, or more specifically, prose poetry.'(Introduction)
'Poetry has many pleasures, and, as quite a few of us might suspect, an almost equal share of pains. But every so often, every so often, a book comes along that panders to my desire to loll about reading a detective novel, one hand dipping into the box of chocs and riffling the paper cups to come upon an orange cream, which is my favourite. I am aware, out of the corner of my eye, of the literature outlining the comfort of a rules-based, escapist genre, where the murder victim is rarely, if ever, someone you have come to like. But it wasn’t until I read Carson’s “Reflections on writing The Detective’s Chair” at the back of this book, that I twigged that what I am really liking is the almost preternatural intuition of the crime solvers.' (Introduction)
