In the above clip Fleur Adcock introduces and reads her poem 'Immigrant'. She's back in New Zealand for a visit from the UK, to launch her latest book, Glass Wings. I went to see her in conversation with Harry Ricketts last night, and I was fortunate enough to have afternoon tea with her on Friday. We very much claim her as a New Zealand poet - I certainly do, I see her as a foremother of us New Zealand woman poets - and yet she hasn't spent much of her life here in New Zealand. This poem is about a time when she was shedding her (unwanted) New Zealandness, when she'd escaped back to the UK, but New Zealand still had its claws on her.
More Tuesday Poems over on the hub blog: http://tuesdaypoem.blogspot.co.nz/.
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2 comments:
interesting situation - in the UK she's regarded as a New Zealand poet, though she no longer has the accent. I've always liked her poetry. My favourite is the one about 'summer work', the great opus that is always just about to begin!
A great little cameo this one. Loved hearing Fleur read it herself. She does a New Zealand accent extremely well! Reminds me of my brother who like Fleur is a New Zealander in England who speaks with an English accent but loves to ring me up and speak like a 'kiwi':-)
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