Summer was a Fast Train without Terminals
To love in a language prised from my wishbone.
To sing a landscape where village girls once burst the moon with giggles.
To dance through the fattest eye of a rice-grain.
To do all these in peace and war is the wish embodied in Merlinda Bobis’ poetry. From her epic poem Cantata of the Warrior Woman: Daragang Magayon to lyric reflections on longing, and finally to an erotic dance-drama, Bobis traces the cartography of desire and its intimacy with death.
1998 | ISBN 9781875559763 | Paperback | 200 x 130 mm | 203 pp
Awards
Shortlist, The Age Book of the Year Award 1999
Reviews
‘...a powerful exposition on the transition of woman to warrior, based on the myth of the origin of Mount Mayon. This epic performance poem, written in the grand tradition, tells of lust, love and war. It is compelling reading replete with seductive images and dramatic dialogue.’
–Counterpoise, USA
‘Bobis can produce some genuinely haunting pieces. This is a touching work from established poet.’
–Hamesh Wyatt, Otago Daily Times