- Published: 28 March 2016
- ISBN: 9781775538554
- Imprint: RHNZ Godwit
- Format: Hardback
- Pages: 128
- RRP: $37.00
This Change in the Light
A Collection of Poems
- Published: 28 March 2016
- ISBN: 9781775538554
- Imprint: RHNZ Godwit
- Format: Hardback
- Pages: 128
- RRP: $37.00
. . . tightly curated and unified . . . The collection covers The Big Things: the arrival of grandchildren, immigration to a new country, a friend dying, the wedding. "Shelter with Me" deserves to become the default poem to be read at New Zealand weddings. . . . At the centre of the collection is a series of "10 sonnets for my mother" under the umbrella title "How I Saw Her". They are formally strict, but the impressive technical control never distracts from the emotions at their centre. Near the end are two almost unbearably moving poems about the experience of having a child with cancer. This brief account merely scratches the surface of a mosaic of poems whose impact is out of all proportion to the size of the book in which they appear.
North & South
These are terrific . . . nuances of detail, flickers of humour . . . little shards of story . . . a touching final poem . . . terrifically strong poetry.
Harry Ricketts, Radio NZ
. . . of family, travels, milestones, things happening to a woman growing old, and a literary woman . . . a very beautiful book . . . a keepsake . . . a very lovely book . . . its lyrical writing . . . ultimately about love.
Mary McCallum, Radio NZ
The old adage, don’t judge a book by its cover, is tricky to abide by when confronted with such an aesthetically charming book. A sunny, kaleidoscopic front cover, with coloured inserts interspersed with black and whites. . . . Kidman has a range of voices, and can shift between lights and darks. There is indeed a ‘Change in the Light’; there is chiaroscuro here, shadows amongst the flowers
Elizabeth Morton, Booksellers News