ALAN WEARNE
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"Saying all the great sexy things" |
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The Penguin edition of The Lovemakers was launched on March 15th 2001, together with a CD of selections read by the author.
Centred on Australian suburbia in the 1960’s, 70’s
and 80’s, The Lovemakers explores the inner and outer tensions of families
and society, and the rituals of home extensions, weddings and public-service career
paths. Meanwhile, in the city, the demi-monde transforms itself into the drug
curlture. Alan Wearne’s stunning verse-novel builds pwerfully to its emotional
heart: the triangle of Barb, her husband Roger and her lover Neil. |
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2002 NSW PREMIER'S LITERARY AWARDS
Alan Wearne & The Lovemakers
awarded
2002 BOOK OF THE YEAR
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KENNETH SLESSOR PRIZE FOR POETRY
2002 Arts Queensland Judith Wright Calanthe Award for Australian Poetry
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poetry a form of writing to be tackled by its audience with deliberation, and
much of The Lovemakers propelled by voice and voices, readers will be 'overhearing'
quite a lot of dialogue, and should be prepared for many characters to step forward
and address them directly. This, I suppose, is where the CD comes in. Its selections
are meant to give both some idea of the work's plots and scope, and my way
of reading the verse. To catch certain emphases and intonations in these selections
certainly won't hinder an appreciation of the whole. Besides, it has been
often proposed that my poetry is written for my voice as much as for the page.
Certainly I know I come from an aural (though not necessarily a ‘performance’)
tradition. But unless a poem is so dominated by its ‘visual’ elements
that reading aloud is near to impossible then all poetry should be drafted and
auditioned as much with its creator's voice as with his/her pen and paper.
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Covering thirty years of this country’s life and loves, The Lovemakers is enormous in its scope. And of course we expect even more from Alan Wearne: a near preternatural sensitivity to Australians and their complex private, social and occupational situations. But what is even more striking in this book is the incredible compression of the poeotry, one which opens out to the reader in amazing layers of imaginative detail.
Someone is making rabbit’s ears in the school photo, someone is runing a bra up the flagpole. A poetry of biography: of families, friends and lovers. A poetry that weaves lyrics and songs into daily living. A poetry in love with people. A book to swim in.
With Wearne, we get the combination of extremely imaginative writing on the largest possible scale, in a style of absolute originality.
Alan Wearne and his merry band : Review by Jane Sullivan The Age
Ali Alizadeh
Dotlit : Book Review by Carmen Leigh Keates
Hear the 'burbs sing : Sydney Morning Herald, March 23, 2001
Lawson of the suburbs finds poetry in ordinary lives : Book Review by Angela Bennie
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Text Extract
Reading from the CD in MP3 format (
