Accidents of Composition

by Merlinda Bobis

Is it the sun a hole sucking in a bird or Icarus about to singe the sun? Which composes which? The poet asks as she circumnavigates the globe, history, and an inner universe. When it responds, there's the small shudder, the sprawl of a spin, or the quiet before and after a full circle. The eyes catch a black bird close to an eerie sun. Instantly, a an accident of composition. Or a tree, rock, light from a story heard, dreamt, read or remembered returns as if it were the only tree, rock, light in the planet.

Genres: Poetry

174 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2017

About the author

Merlinda Bobis is an award-winning contemporary Philippine-Australian writer who has had 4 novels, 6 poetry books and a collection of short stories published, and 10 dramatic works performed. For her, ‘Writing visits like grace. Its greatest gift is the comfort if not the joy of transformation. In an inspired moment, we almost believe that anguish can be made bearable and injustice can be overturned, because they can be named. And if we’re lucky, joy can even be multiplied a hundredfold, so we may have reserves in the cupboard for the lean times.’

Born in Tabaco in the Philippines province of Albay, Merlinda Bobis attended Bicol University High School then completed her B.A. at Aquinas University in Legazpi City. She holds post-graduate degrees from the University of Santo Tomas and University of Wollongong where she taught Creative Writing for 21 years. She now lives and writes on Ngunnawal land (Canberra, Australia).

Her literary awards include the 2016 Christina Stead Prize for Fiction NSW Premier's Literary Award for her novel 'Locust Girl. A Lovesong'; three Philippine National Books Awards (2016: 'Locust Girl', 2014: 'Fish-Hair Woman', 2000: 'White Turtle'); 2013 MUBA: 'Fish-Hair Woman'; 2000 Steele Rudd Award for the Best Published Collection of Australian Short Stories: 'White Turtle'; 2006 Philippine National Balagtas Award for her poetry and prose (in English, Filipino and Bikol); 1998 Prix Italia, 1998 Australian Writers' Guild Award and 1995 Ian Reed Radio Drama Prize for her play 'Rita's Lullaby'; three Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards in Literature Poetry Category (2016: Second prize, 1989: Second, 1987: First). Her poetry collection, 'Accidents of Composition' was Highly Commended for the 2018 ACT Book of the Year.

Reviews

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this tender collection of poetry, a diverse array of inspirations separate this collection into three parts.
1. Not Quite Still- contains many moving tributes to the deceased. Lucy Afloat-commemorates the scattering of ashes over Pulpit rock in The Blue Mountains. Another poem, After Reming, recalls the hole left by a family home after it was washed away by a volcanic mudslide during a supertyphoon in The Philippines, leaving a garden gate and a budding purple hibiscus.
2. How To Spin - Covers diverse topics such as representations of glass art and European explorers in the Pacific encounters with indigenous people.
3. Passage - Migration and refugees along with our insignificant place in Space, calls on us to be kind and love one another.
There's lots of loving intention in this collection of accidents of kindness.

Very pleased to have read this local, intelligent poets work. I hope she shares much more with us.

[Zymon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Merlinda Bobis takes advantage of her experiences and knowledge of history anf current events in this lengthy poetry collection. In the process of doing so, she extends her gratitude to friends and family by remembering their shared moments, all of which are memories now immortalized on the pages through the poems.

[june · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.2