Two or More Islands

Discover the profound poetry of Diana Bridge in this captivating collection, published by Otago University Press. This paperback edition, comprising 80 pages, invites readers into a rich literary landscape that intricately weaves cultural perspectives from both Western and New Zealand literature, as well as Asian influences from her experiences in China and India. Bridge's poetry presents an elegant exploration of myth, utilizing it as a vital lens through which to engage with historical and emotional narratives. Addressing modern existential themes, her poems are filled with lively intelligence and verbal dexterity. By drawing upon the heroines of Western Classical legend, she revitalizes ancient stories with unique interpretations and insights. Bridging the past with contemporary issues, this work serves as a reflection on family and identity, highlighted by the poignant conclusion, 'The Way a Stone Falls,' which features 22 compelling poems set in Southeast Asia, tackling the echoes of Cambodian history and the complexities of decisions in the Hindu tradition. With a rich depth of perspective, Diana Bridge crafts a poetic experience that resonates strongly with both scholarly appreciation and personal reflection, making this collection a must-have for lovers of modern poetry.

Author: Diana Bridge Publisher: Otago University Press
Bind: paperback

Pages: 80
Publication Date: 01-06-2019

Diana Bridge’s subjects are reflected through a range of cultural lenses. To engagement with Western and New Zealand literature should be added her immersion in the great Asian cultures of China and India. Her poetry is an intricate meshing of realities and possesses a remarkable depth and richness of perspective. These are poised, elegantly wrought poems, full of lively intelligence and verbal deftness. Since Baxter, most New Zealand poets have shied away from the use of myth in their poetry. In this collection, Bridge mines this vein for its deeply traditional and personal resonances. She knows, as firmly as did Jung, that ‘myths give us pictures for our emotions’. Here, the poems that openly glance off myth are brief, fresh takes that centre on the heroines of Western Classical legend. They begin in an irony that is needed to cope with the sometimes shocking stories, then range through time to alight with radical brevity on Shakespeare and English history. The refrain of the past narrows down to the notion of the family, No one of us today is of the House of Atreus - Just meet the Family, I say. The book concludes with ‘The Way a Stone Falls’, 22 poems set in Southeast Asia. The sequence takes on board the Cambodian tragedy of last century by way of headless statues - taking a sideswipe at French colonialism. It confronts the hardest decision in the whole Hindu tradition, that of Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita. This is how Bridge finds her way in the world - a place of trees and people and noise and contingency - with the assurance that myth tells her story as well as its own.