Singing the snake: Poems from the western desert, 1979-1988

by Billy Marshall-Stoneking

Genres: Poetry

97 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1990

About the author

Billy Marshall-Stoneking was born in the United States in 1947, and migrated to Australia in 1972. After several years working as a high school teacher, he spent four years at Papunya Aboriginal Settlement in the Northern Territory where he collected stories for use in a bilingual reading programme. He helped found the Poets' Union of Australia. His first book of poetry, 'Singing The Snake' (Angus and Robertson, 1990), has been hailed as a modern-day classic. Billy has also written for television (co-creator/writer of 'Stringer'), and has made several documentary films. He is a graduate of the Australian Film, Television and Radio School, and a former member of the Playwrights' Studio (National Institute of Dramatic Art).