full screen
Home > Literature & literary studies > Poetry > Poetry by individual poets > Presence of Absence
Presence of Absence

Presence of Absence


     0     
5
4
3
2
1



International Edition


About the Book

"In this sequence of poems, accomplished poet Richard Bell pays homage to his wife of many years, who died of cancer. In doing so, he explores the process of grieving, finding it to be inseparable from memory and, ultimately, from love. Memories and feelings both have a kind of autonomy; they surface unpredictably, according to their own rhythms; they are not in the control of the poet, who observes, suffers, recalls and threads lines together. Yet while they are partially detached from the poet's will, memories and feelings inform a new sense of identity. Inevitably, this involves a radically altered sense of time: time has become newly precious, since a central relationship has been curtailed by it, yet that relationship continues timelessly. Just as the emotional effect of the book is more than the sum of its poem parts, so the sustained love of the poet's life is discovered to be more than his own feelings and memories and the sense of a shared life: 'There is a you and me/that goes beyond/what is' ('Grief is just another feeling'). Indeed, one of the book's great strengths is the portrayal of the lively personality of the poet's wife - her nervousness, good humour, wit and joie de vivre. Many of the poems address her, bringing the realisation that the poet alone is now the repository of shared memories: 'Just drying my hands/on your towel: I am you now/and you can be me' ('Seven Senryū'). The repeated sense of absence gives rise to a new set of relations, marked by new permissions, such as the interpolation of Richard's recollections in poetry into the young Sue's diary. Powerful physical attraction dominates, poignantly, yet in the end the couple cannot be separated: 'I am as much of you/as I am of me. Thanks./R.' ('Gratitude'). These are poems not only for the bereaved but for anyone who has ever loved." - Carolyn Masel, author of Moorings


Best Sellers



Product Details
  • ISBN-13: 9781761094125
  • Publisher: Ginninderra Press
  • Publisher Imprint: Ginninderra Press
  • Height: 198 mm
  • No of Pages: 76
  • Spine Width: 4 mm
  • Width: 129 mm
  • ISBN-10: 1761094122
  • Publisher Date: 09 Nov 2022
  • Binding: Paperback
  • Language: English
  • Returnable: N
  • Weight: 132 gr


Similar Products

Add Photo
Add Photo

Customer Reviews

REVIEWS      0     
Click Here To Be The First to Review this Product
Presence of Absence
Ginninderra Press -
Presence of Absence
Writing guidlines
We want to publish your review, so please:
  • keep your review on the product. Review's that defame author's character will be rejected.
  • Keep your review focused on the product.
  • Avoid writing about customer service. contact us instead if you have issue requiring immediate attention.
  • Refrain from mentioning competitors or the specific price you paid for the product.
  • Do not include any personally identifiable information, such as full names.

Presence of Absence

Required fields are marked with *

Review Title*
Review
    Add Photo Add up to 6 photos
    Would you recommend this product to a friend?
    Tag this Book Read more
    Does your review contain spoilers?
    What type of reader best describes you?
    I agree to the terms & conditions
    You may receive emails regarding this submission. Any emails will include the ability to opt-out of future communications.

    CUSTOMER RATINGS AND REVIEWS AND QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS TERMS OF USE

    These Terms of Use govern your conduct associated with the Customer Ratings and Reviews and/or Questions and Answers service offered by Booksbay (the "CRR Service").


    By submitting any content to Booksbay, you guarantee that:
    • You are the sole author and owner of the intellectual property rights in the content;
    • All "moral rights" that you may have in such content have been voluntarily waived by you;
    • All content that you post is accurate;
    • You are at least 13 years old;
    • Use of the content you supply does not violate these Terms of Use and will not cause injury to any person or entity.
    You further agree that you may not submit any content:
    • That is known by you to be false, inaccurate or misleading;
    • That infringes any third party's copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret or other proprietary rights or rights of publicity or privacy;
    • That violates any law, statute, ordinance or regulation (including, but not limited to, those governing, consumer protection, unfair competition, anti-discrimination or false advertising);
    • That is, or may reasonably be considered to be, defamatory, libelous, hateful, racially or religiously biased or offensive, unlawfully threatening or unlawfully harassing to any individual, partnership or corporation;
    • For which you were compensated or granted any consideration by any unapproved third party;
    • That includes any information that references other websites, addresses, email addresses, contact information or phone numbers;
    • That contains any computer viruses, worms or other potentially damaging computer programs or files.
    You agree to indemnify and hold Booksbay (and its officers, directors, agents, subsidiaries, joint ventures, employees and third-party service providers, including but not limited to Bazaarvoice, Inc.), harmless from all claims, demands, and damages (actual and consequential) of every kind and nature, known and unknown including reasonable attorneys' fees, arising out of a breach of your representations and warranties set forth above, or your violation of any law or the rights of a third party.


    For any content that you submit, you grant Booksbay a perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, transferable right and license to use, copy, modify, delete in its entirety, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from and/or sell, transfer, and/or distribute such content and/or incorporate such content into any form, medium or technology throughout the world without compensation to you. Additionally,  Booksbay may transfer or share any personal information that you submit with its third-party service providers, including but not limited to Bazaarvoice, Inc. in accordance with  Privacy Policy


    All content that you submit may be used at Booksbay's sole discretion. Booksbay reserves the right to change, condense, withhold publication, remove or delete any content on Booksbay's website that Booksbay deems, in its sole discretion, to violate the content guidelines or any other provision of these Terms of Use.  Booksbay does not guarantee that you will have any recourse through Booksbay to edit or delete any content you have submitted. Ratings and written comments are generally posted within two to four business days. However, Booksbay reserves the right to remove or to refuse to post any submission to the extent authorized by law. You acknowledge that you, not Booksbay, are responsible for the contents of your submission. None of the content that you submit shall be subject to any obligation of confidence on the part of Booksbay, its agents, subsidiaries, affiliates, partners or third party service providers (including but not limited to Bazaarvoice, Inc.)and their respective directors, officers and employees.

    Accept

    New Arrivals



    Inspired by your browsing history


    Your review has been submitted!

    You've already reviewed this product!