Poetry and prose today at Chapters at lunchtime organized by Seven Towers– Ross Hattaway providing the poetry and Donal Molony the prose.

Ross is working very hard on his next book (he says) and it’s going to be a cracker (he implies). Well, with poems like ”Killing My Husband’ it’s going to be at least unusual. The poem is divided into three parts: (1) The Trigger, (2) Pulling the Trigger, and (3) The Requel. Fascinating stuff. Trouble is that Ross does such a line in sardonic comment that I’m not sure whether to take him seriously or not. It could all be tongue in cheek. Then again, on the other hand…  … To finish up he lightened the mood  with a poem from Kate Dempsey about man’s faithful friend. Not being a dog-lover (to put it mildly) I appreciated the artistry but not the subject matter. Never can quite get to grips with this dog-loving business, particularly as, when I meet them, they always seem to want to get to grips with me….  Anyway, it was the usual cool, calculated, delivery from one of New Zealand’s finest exports.

And after wondering about whether or not killing one’s spouse might be a good idea (or might not?) it was good to get back on the level playing field of good, solid prose. Donal Moloney read an excerpt from his novel ‘In the Balance’ where we see the hero (Donal will reject THAT description), Michael, in a pub meeting up with a lady who comes across as rather arch and certainly more worldly-wise than… our hero (sorry, Donal). Like much else of what happens to Michael, this visit to the pub, and the meeting with the lady, is quite unplanned. It happens to him  by accident, not by design. Really good atmospherics and very exact character portrayls and analysis. And not a dog in sight, thank God.

Another enjoyable lunchtime reading and please give a warm round of applause to Oran Ryan who did MC. The Power is with him…