The Best Australian Poems 2010 list of contributors

... as chosen by His Bobship, Robert Adamson, master poet, editor and autobiographer, for Black Inc., steadfast publishers of Aussie lit:


The poets selected for inclusion in The Best Australian Poems 2010 are:

Ali Alizadeh
Chris Andrews
Meera Atkinson
Luke Beesley
Judith Beveridge
Judith Bishop
Ken Bolton
Peter Boyle
Michael Brennan
David Brooks
Jen Jewel Brown
Pam Brown
Allison Browning
Joanne Burns
Elizabeth Campbell
Bonny Cassidy
Eileen Chong
Justin Clemens
Stuart Cooke
Nathan Curnow
Luke Davies
Bruce Dawe
Tricia Dearborn
B.R. Dionysius
Lucy Dougan
Laurie Duggan
Will Eaves
Ali Cobby Eckermann
Stephen Edgar
Chris Edwards
Anne Elvey
Brook Emery
Kate Fagan
Michael Farrell
Susan Fealy
Liam Ferney
S.J. Finn
Lionel Fogarty
Adam Ford
Adam Formosa
Angela Gardner
Claire Gaskin
Jane Gibian
Keri Glastonbury
Lisa Gorton
Robert Gray
Martin Harrison
Kevin Hart
Matt Hetherington
Barry Hill
Sarah Holland Batt
L.K. Holt
Duncan Hose
Lisa Jacobson
Carol Jenkins
A. Frances Johnson
Jill Jones
Frank Kellaway
Peter Kenneally
Graeme Kinross-Smith
John Kinsella
Andy Kissane
Anna Krien
Mike Ladd
Martin Langford
Anthony Lawrence
Michelle Leber
Geoffrey Lehmann
Kate Lilley
Debbie Lim
Astrid Lorange
Cameron Lowe
Roberta Lowing
Anthony Lynch
Jennifer Maiden
Rhyll McMaster
Kate Middleton
Peter Minter
Anne Morgan
Derek Motion
Les Murray
Jenni Nixon
Nguyen Tien Hoang
Geoff Page
Pi.0
Claire Potter
Peter Rose
Josephine Rowe
Robyn Rowland
Brendan Ryan
Gig Ryan
Jaya Savige
Thomas Shapcott
Craig Sherborn
Andrew Slattery
Vivian Smith
Peter Steele
James Stuart
Maria Takolander
Hugh Tolhurst
John Tranter
Mark Tredinnick
Louise Wakeling
Chris Wallace-Crabbe
Meredith Wattison
Petra White
Chloe Wilson
Fiona Wright
Ouyang Yu

What a good list! I look forward to it.

The Best Australian Poems 2009 Edited by Robert Adamson

In The Best Australian Poems 2009, award-winning poet Robert Adamson puts together a selection of the most outstanding poems written by Australian authors over the past year. Alongside renowned names, the editor has solicited contributions from new and emerging poets and some of their work appears in print here for the first time. The result is a vibrant and fascinating edition of this much-loved anthology.

Available now.

Contributors:
π.O.
A. Frances Johnson
Adam Aitken
Adrienne Eberhard
Alan Wearne
Alex Skovron
Ali Cobby Eckermann
Alicia Sometimes
Amanda Joy
Andrew Slattery
Anne Elvey
Anthony Lawrence
Astrid Lorange
Barry Hill
Berndt Sellheim
Carol Jenkins
Chris Edwards
Chris Wallace-Crabbe
Claire Gaskin
Clive James
Craig Sherborne
David Brooks
David McCooey
David Musgrave
Debbie Lim
Derek Motion
Dorothy Porter
Elizabeth Campbell
Fay Zwicky
Felicity Plunkett
Fiona Wright
Geoff Page
Geoffrey Lehmann
Gig Ryan
Ivy Alvarez
J.S. Harry
Jan Owen
Jane Gibian
Jaya Savige
Jayne Fenton Keane
Jeltje Fanoy
Jen Jewel Brown
Jenni Nixon
Jennifer Harrison
Jennifer Maiden
Jessika Tong
Jill Jones
Joanne Burns
Johanna Featherstone
John Leonard
John Tranter
Judith Beveridge
Judith Bishop
Kate Fagan
Kate Middleton
Ken Bolton
Kent MacCarter
Kerry Leves
Kevin Hart
L.K. Holt
Larry Buttrose
Laurie Duggan
Les Murray
Lia Hills
Lisa Gorton
Louise Waller
Lucy Dougan
Luke Davies
Mandy Beaumont
Maria Takolander
Mark Tredinnick
Martin Harrison
Matt Hetherington
Meg Mooney
Meredith Wattison
Michael Brennan
Michael Farrell
Michelle Cahill
Michelle Leber
Pam Brown
Paul Kelly
Peter Minter
Peter Porter
Peter Rose
Petra White
Philip Salom
Robert Gray
Robyn Rowland
Ron Pretty
Rose Lucas
Sarah Day
Sarah Holland-Batt
Sarah K. Bell
Shevaun Cooley
Stephen Edgar
Stuart Cooke
Susan Fealy
Susan Hawthorne
Susan McCreery
Thomas Shapcott
Tim Thorne
Vivian Smith

CJ Dennis Prize for Poetry: Winner & Shortlist 2009

Judges: Claire Gaskin (convenor), Justin Clemens and Lisa Gorton
Judges’ comments

It was great to see such a large number of entries from Australian presses, reflecting the range and strength of our national poetry scene, the irrepressibility of poetry. We were excited by several new poets, such as Andrew Slattery with Canyon, and also by some striking collections from established poets, such as Anthony Lawrence's Bark and Pam Brown's True Thoughts. This award is for a substantial body of new work: the books on the shortlist distinguished themselves by their craft and commitment, and because they held together as collections.

Winner

The winner of the CJ Dennis Prize for Poetry is:

* The Golden Bird
Robert Adamson (Black Inc)

Shortlist

The Golden Bird - WINNER

Robert Adamson
(Black Inc)

The new work in this collection shows remarkable craftsmanship. From the very beginning of the sequence, one knows one is in capable hands; Adamson never strikes a bum note. The poems are spare and fantastical, where strange birds fly from savage nature into the world of history and politics. Adamson creates a taut vernacular with an element of song, which pulses throughout the poems.


Fishing in the Devonian

Carol Jenkins
(Puncher and Wattman)

Fishing in the Devonian draws on astrophysics, palaeontology and suburban Australian life. Driving the idea of 'nature poetry' beyond its usual limits, Jenkins creates a stunning sequence of poems with an extraordinary power of defamiliarisation. From extinct species of fish to extinct species of fridge, Jenkins' wit and imagination is evident throughout.


The Other Way Out

Bronwyn Lea
(Giramondo Publishing)

Lea works and reworks traditional forms, bringing individuality and edginess, wit and longing to her verse. The poems are lucid yet surprising, consistent and seductive. The directness of Lea's voice balances intimacy with restrained technical experimentation. Wide-ranging in her allusions, Lea writes as well about love as about art, setting up dialogues between other writers, thinkers and her own life.