Poetry Prize 2009
Comments by Peter Boyle & MTC Cronin
Paice's original and formally satisfying poem deftly fuses the personal and the political, the humorous and the serious, using down-to-earth language in a surreal way to take the reader or listener somewhere new and surprising. With its strong sense of poetry as taking one on a journey, this poem works particularly well when read aloud, being simultaneously entertaining and provocative.
Second prize: 'Red Tulips' by Mark Tredinnick
Marked by flashes of great lyricism, Tredinnick's 'Red Tulips' is a brooding introspective poem where nature and human self-doubt meet. In an open-form style reminiscent of American Charles Wright, Tredinnick skilfully traces the vagaries and confusions of the individual psyche in the midst of so much everyday beauty.
Commended: 'Wrotisserie' by Nathan Shepherdson
Quirky, witty and thought-provoking, this assortment of punchy one line aphorisms provides much to stimulate and amuse the attentive reader. Connections between the lines can be read in or out depending upon the reader's state of mind.
Commended: 'Economy' by Oliver Driscoll
These often disturbing poems stand out by their unusual form, using truncated
everyday speech to create a sense of malice and uncanny malevolence. While
perhaps mysterious and abstract in their relationship to one another in
a loose sequence, the poems individually deliver strong and sometimes
shocking impacts.
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