Best of Australian Poems 2022

by Jeanine Leane (Editor), Judith Beveridge (Editor), Adam Aitken (Contributor)

All poetry is story telling - an exchange between writer and reader - a meeting place - an invitation to another's experience, history, standpoint, insight, commentary. - Jeanine Leane, Judith Beveridge
Best of Australian Poems is a new annual anthology series collecting previously published and unpublished poems to create a poetic snapshot of the year that was. Capturing the richness and diversity of Australian poetry, the series, now in its second year, will also explore how poetic responses to the contemporary moment develop.
The book opens with an introduction by its 2022 editors, multiple award-winning and highly respected poets and editors, Jeanine Leane and Judith Beveridge. Alongside each being prominent poets in their own right, both Leane, a Wiradjuri First Nations poet, and Beveridge have extensive experience as poetry teachers, academics and poetry anthologists previously.
The Best of Australian Poems (BoAP) series is published by Australia's national poetry organisation, Australian Poetry, and features two different guest editors each year, to amplify the range of voices selected. It is funded by Creative Victoria, the Australia Council for the Arts, the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund and individual patrons.

Genres: Poetry

234 pages, Paperback

Published December 1, 2022

About the author

Jeanine Leane is a Wiradjuri woman from south-west New South Wales. A Doctorate in literature and Aboriginal representation from the University of Technology, Sydney, followed a long teaching career at secondary and tertiary level. Formerly an Indigenous Research Fellow at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, she currently holds a post-doctoral fellowship at ANU. Jeanine's unpublished manuscript Purple Threads won the David Unaipon Award at the 2010 Queensland Premier's Literary Awards, and, once published, was shortlisted for the 2012 Commonwealth Book Prize. Jeanine is the recipient of an Australian Research Council grant which will produce a scholarly monograph called Reading the Nation: A critical study of Aboriginal/Settler representation in the contemporary Australian literary landscape.

Reviews

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewing Best of Australian Poems 2022 (Edited by Jeanine Leane & Judith Beveridge)

Best of Australian Poems 2022 is a rich and thoughtfully curated anthology that captures the breadth, emotional range, and cultural depth of contemporary Australian poetry. The editors assemble a powerful cross-section of voices and styles, allowing readers to experience poetry as both personal reflection and social commentary. Each contribution feels intentionally selected to represent the evolving poetic landscape and the many perspectives shaping it.

What makes this collection especially valuable is its role as both an artistic record and an educational resource. The diversity of themes, forms, and cultural viewpoints makes it highly relevant for families, educators, and young readers developing literary awareness. As an annual snapshot of poetic expression, the anthology not only preserves the moment but invites ongoing dialogue between generations of readers and writers.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought this for the sake of old favourites (Rory, Josie, Panda, Eileen...) but this is such a beautiful collection of poems – I discovered a heap of other authors who I now love. Obviously not all the poems were my cup of tea but I was impressed that I did enjoy most of the ones included in this book.