Messages From The Embers – Denise O’Hagan

Messages from the Embers: From Devastation to Hope

Edited by Julia Kaylock and Denise O'Hagan

Australian Bushfire Poetry Anthology

Black Quill Press, October 2020
Paperback, 256 pp, 229 x 152 mm
ISBN 978-0-6480020-6-2
RRP AUD$22.50

Messages from the Embers brings together 118 poetic voices and visions into 138 poems that detail and articulate the devastating 2019–2020 bushfire crisis.

While some writers address the broad political and social scope of the catastrophe, others take a microscope to the localised and domestic effects during a time when the fragility of every structure and living creature was magnified. Beginning with the origins of fire, to the burning to the ashen aftermath, this anthology is courageous in its expression and acknowledgement of the multilayered loss felt by so many. Within several of these poems is a resilient undercurrent of hopefulness, and a will to emerge from damage and drive a more perceptive way forward.

Foreword by Amanda Anastasi, Poet in Residence, Monash Climate Change Communication Research Hub

All profits from this publication will be directed to BlazeAid.

Includes foreword, backdrop, introduction, acknowledgments and biographies.

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About the editors

Julia Kaylock has a background in adult education, career coaching and educational publishing. She has been published widely in newspapers, journals, magazines, and online. She is the editor of poetry anthology Gatherings by the Lighthouse (Picklepoetry, 2019). www.juliakaylock.com

Denise O’Hagan has a background in commercial book publishing in Australia and the UK. She is Poetry Editor for Australia/New Zealand for Irish literary journal The Blue Nib, and author of the Mini Style Guide (Black Quill Press, 2018) and The Beating Heart (Ginninderra Press, 2020). https://denise-ohagan.com

Praise for Messages From The Embers

‘These poems are a part of the broader climate change experience for Australians and communities worldwide. They are part of the conversation we need to have.’

‘Conveys the loss and destruction of the fires, bringing alive the senses and emotions from initial burning to charred remains...’

‘This collection puts a much needed spotlight on the bushfire devastation in Australia - a great range of poetry from well-known and emerging poets.’

'(The) poets paint a candid, anthropological image of a people’s suffering, its struggles, and its triumphs lived during a catastrophic period in their history.'