Cirrus@Austlit

'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)

'This anthology...is a negotiation of many spaces. That of poets and their work, the idea of "Australia", the idea of being "represented" in a different demographic (America), personal or textual issues with anthologiser, who else is being included (though none outside myself and the publishers have knowledge of this until publication). Vitally, whoat matters is the conversations that arise from the anthology going public, and how the poets and readers deal with this community that has been organically and artificially induced.' John Kinsella (Source: backcover)