Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Poetic Justice



The local studies collection at the Wagga Wagga City Library has a substantial literature section. At the Wagga heat of the recently held Poetry slam local poets read their works and I started thinking about Wagga's literary precedents - Dame Mary Gilmore being the most famous author (her visit to Wagga during Book Week 1948 a gala event ) . Within the wider region , Miles Franklin comes to mind, though not strictly famous for poetry.
Included in the collection are diverse editions of Four W, anthologies of prose and poetry produced by Charles Sturt University , Booranga Writers Centre and Arts NSW ; "Pages from Sages", slim volumes from various local poets- but one treasure I found particularly stands out for me : "Mainly lousy mid nineties covers of early eighties hits" by the enigmatically named Zeb'e.a die.
Not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach , Mainly lousy is not lousy at all. There is no biographical information about the author, who writes about everyday experiences and feelings in a witty, sometimes heartbreaking, and intelligent way.
Are slim volumes of poetry a thing of the past? I wonder what Wagga poets are writing about now ? Do you know the identity of Zeb'e.a die? or even better, Zeb'e.a die let me know if you are still writing.
email me at wagga.local.studies@gmail.com.

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