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Cover image courtesy of UQP.
y separately published work icon Love Poems and Death Threats selected work   poetry  
Alternative title: Love Poems and Death Threats : A Collection of Poetry by Samuel Wagan Watson
Issue Details: First known date: 2014... 2014 Love Poems and Death Threats
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'The much-anticipated new volume of poetry from the winner of the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards Book of the Year

'Samuel Wagan Watson set the literary world alight in 1999 with his David Unaipon award-winning collection of poems Of Muse, Meandering and Midnight. His next volume, Smoke Encrypted Whispers, won Book of the Year at the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards over Tim Winton.

'In this, his first new volume of poetry in nearly a decade, he once again excites, inspires and shocks. Woven into this collection is a dark, satirical take on contemporary Australia, with its acquisitiveness and materialism, Wagan Watson shows an intense political engagement. The poems are dynamic, vivid and powerful, containing the clear language of witness reminiscent of Indigenous song-writers such as Kev Carmody and Dr Yunupingu.

'Love Poems and Death Threats breaks new ground for Indigenous Australian writing and adds to Samuel Wagan Watson’s reputation as one of our most exciting poets.' (Publication summary)

Notes

  • Dedication: This collection is dedicated to the people I love, and the ones who have almost done me in.

  • The work contains three parts:

    I. Blood and Ink

    II. No Standing Anytime

    III. No Naked Flames

Contents

* Contents derived from the St Lucia, Indooroopilly - St Lucia area, Brisbane - North West, Brisbane, Queensland,:University of Queensland Press , 2014 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
Headwatersi"I Am A River...", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 3-4)
Blood and Ink, Samuel Wagan Watson , sequence poetry (p. 3-5)
Ebb Tidei"There is no recession in your departure. The river replenishes", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 4)
Backwatersi"As a pupil I must ask: How is it you charted the backwaters", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 4-5)
Postscripti"Postscript in a Bottle", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 5)
In The Light of Two Firesi"My eyes trawl depressions created by ink.", Samuel Wagan Watson , poetry (p. 6-7)
Apocalyptic Quatrains : The Australian Wheat Board/Iraq Bribery Scandali"We learn, yet forget, in the cataclysm of our birth", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 8-9)
The Grounding Sentencei"It has been an eternity of dispersal, Knowledge, secret and", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 10)
Sentineli"The midden remains; a material witness on a promontory", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 12-13)
Hallowed Groundi"Saturday morning on Logan Road and my lady is pelting", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 14-15)
Bird-Song of Imminent Deathi"Death songs off the Logan Road night;", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 16-17)
Terrori"All the signs read, Smile...You're on camera", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 18)
Kissing Ghostsi"When dreaming", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 19)
Throw Salti"My elders are well acquainted with the unlucky,", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 20)
Scratchedi"When I was a kid the weekend started with cartoons...", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 21)
In My Mother's '80s Kitcheni"The golden light at 5am was that of a Renaissance painting", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 22)
Alfabet Ikan "My brothers once showed me the bounty that can be had in bait-nets=Saudara-saudaraku pernah menunjukkan padaku harta karun yang bisa ditemu di jala umpan" The Alphabet of Fishi"My brothers once showed me the bounty that can be had in bait-nets.", Samuel Wagan Watson , Kadek Krishna Adidharma (translator) single work poetry (p. 23)
Golden Fishi"Sideshow alley explodes! Free-people are paying to be pulverised", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 24)
Boomerangs in a Thunderstormi"The clouds are so low that I imagine a puffy hand, reaching", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 25)
Trash and Treasurei"I was up early on Sunday morning, but I felf cleansed: cleaner", Samuel Wagan Watson , single work poetry (p. 26)

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Other Formats

Works about this Work

“Warriors Come Out to Play” R. D. Wood , 2016 single work review
— Appears in: Long Paddock , vol. 75 no. 3 2016;

— Review of Yimbama Burraga Gutya , 2015 selected work poetry ; Sweetened in Coals Phillip Hall , 2014 selected work poetry ; Dirty Words Natalie Harkin , 2015 selected work poetry ; Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry
Activism and Terra Tactics Michael Farrell , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 18-19 July 2015; (p. 21)

— Review of The Sixth Creek Rachael Mead , 2013 selected work poetry ; Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry ; Terra Bravura Meredith Wattison , 2014 selected work poetry
Going Home After the Apocalypse : Robbie Coburn Reviews Love Poems and Death Threats by Samuel Wagan Watson Robbie Coburn , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: Writ Poetry Review , December no. 2 2014;

— Review of Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry
Snapshots of Love and Identity Show Intensity Mike Ladd , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 15-16 November 2014; (p. 35)

— Review of Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry
'Wagan Watson’s style is like a series of polaroid snaps – fast-paced, with multiple interconnections and restless perceptions.'
Samuel Wagan Watson's Edgy Poems of Love and Death Mike Ladd , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 15 November 2014; The Age , 15 November 2014; (p. Entertainment/Books) The Canberra Times , 15 November 2014;

— Review of Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry
Samuel Wagan Watson's Edgy Poems of Love and Death Mike Ladd , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 15 November 2014; The Age , 15 November 2014; (p. Entertainment/Books) The Canberra Times , 15 November 2014;

— Review of Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry
Snapshots of Love and Identity Show Intensity Mike Ladd , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 15-16 November 2014; (p. 35)

— Review of Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry
'Wagan Watson’s style is like a series of polaroid snaps – fast-paced, with multiple interconnections and restless perceptions.'
Going Home After the Apocalypse : Robbie Coburn Reviews Love Poems and Death Threats by Samuel Wagan Watson Robbie Coburn , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: Writ Poetry Review , December no. 2 2014;

— Review of Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry
Activism and Terra Tactics Michael Farrell , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 18-19 July 2015; (p. 21)

— Review of The Sixth Creek Rachael Mead , 2013 selected work poetry ; Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry ; Terra Bravura Meredith Wattison , 2014 selected work poetry
“Warriors Come Out to Play” R. D. Wood , 2016 single work review
— Appears in: Long Paddock , vol. 75 no. 3 2016;

— Review of Yimbama Burraga Gutya , 2015 selected work poetry ; Sweetened in Coals Phillip Hall , 2014 selected work poetry ; Dirty Words Natalie Harkin , 2015 selected work poetry ; Love Poems and Death Threats Samuel Wagan Watson , 2014 selected work poetry
What I’m Reading Ellen van Neerven , 2014 single work column
— Appears in: Meanjin Online 2014;
Last amended 14 Nov 2019 10:54:10
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