In this, her first collection, Philomena Johnson engages in an exploration of presence – the turning towards, not away, from. Winner of the 2024 John O’Connor Award for a First Collection, these are poems of joy, grief and memory, woven through with the natural world and the potent magic of words. Philomena Johnson’s debut collection is the love-song of a restless, seeking mind to the fallible, impermanent, and deeply loved world; where the sacred can be found in the movement of wings, or the scuttle of some half-seen creature in the bush, or in the patience and solitude of a child reading a book. Even if only for a while. It’s only ever for a while.
Format: Paperback
Imprint: Small New Zealand Publisher
Publication date: 08/08/2023
