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'Opal Sunset gathers together fifty years of Clive James’s poetry, and will undoubtedly enhance his reputation as one of the most versatile and accomplished of contemporary writers. Indeed – as with Other Passports, The Book of My Enemy and Angels Over Elsinore before it – Opal Sunset proves Clive James to be as well suited to the intense demands of the poetic form as he is to prose.
'Readers new to his verse will not be surprised to find him a master of the comic set-piece and surreal excursion, while those who are familiar with his previous collections will already be aware of his fluency and apparently effortless style, his technical skill and thematic scope. Ultimately, however, the highest recommendation one can give is that Clive James is, in these poems, unmistakably himself – an assured and dazzling wordsmith.' (Publication summary)
Notes
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Included in the New York Times Book Review 100 Notable Books List for 2008.
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Dedication: to Robert Weil
Contents
- The Book of My Enemy Has Been Remainderedi"The book of my enemy has been remaindered", single work poetry satire (p. 1-2)
- Sack Artisti"Reeling between the redhead and the blonde", single work poetry (p. 3-6)
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A Gesture Towards James Joycei"The gesture towards Finnegans Wake was deliberate",
single work
poetry
satire
(p. 7-9)
Note: Epigraph: My gesture towards Finnegans Wake is deliberate. - Ronald Bush, T. S. Eliot: A Study in Character and Style.
- Thoughts on Feeling Carbon-Datedi"No moons are left to see the other side of.", single work poetry (p. 10)
- Johnny Weissmuller Dead in Acapulcoi"Apart possibly from waving hello to the cliff-divers", single work poetry (p. 11-13)
- Will Those Responsible Come Forward?i"May the Lord have mercy on all those peoples", single work poetry satire (p. 14-16)
- Echo Echo Echoi"Changes in temperature entail turmoil", single work poetry (p. 17-18)
- The Anchor of the Siriusi"Triangular Macquarie Place, up from the Quay", single work poetry (p. 19-21)
- The Ferry Tokeni"Not gold but some base alloy, it stays good", single work poetry (p. 22)
- A Valediction for Philip Larkini"You never travelled much but now you have", single work poetry (p. 23-29)
- Jet-Lag in Tokyoi"Flat feet kept Einstein out of the army.", single work poetry (p. 30-31)
- What Happened to Audeni"His stunning first lines burst out of the page", single work poetry (p. 32-36)
- Last Night the Sea Dreamed It Was Greta Scacchii"Last night the sea dreamed it was Greta Scacchi.", single work poetry (p. 37-38)
- Drama in the Soviet Unioni"When Kaganovich, brother-in-law of Stalin,", single work poetry (p. 39-40)
- Budge Upi"Flowering cherry pales to brush-stroke pink at blossom fall", single work poetry (p. 41)
- Bring Me the Sweat of Gabriela Sabatinii"Bring me the sweat of Gabriela Sabatini", single work poetry humour (p. 42-46)
- Go Back to the Opal Sunseti"Go back to the opal sunset, where the wine", single work poetry (p. 47-48)
- The Eternity Mani"Never filmed, he was photgraphed only once,", single work poetry (p. 49-54)
- Reflections in an Extended Kitcheni"Late summer charms the birds out of the trees", single work poetry (p. 55-56)
- Simple Stanzas About Modern Mastersi"If T. S. Eliot and Ezra Pound", single work poetry (p. 57-58)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
-
A One-Man Writers' Festival
2011
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Overland , Spring no. 204 2011; (p. 55-62) Peter Kirkpatrick on the poetic ambitions of Clive James, celebrity. -
Artist Perfects His Engineering Skills
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18-20 December 2009; (p. 24-25)
— Review of The Blaze of Obscurity : Unreliable Memoirs V 2009 single work autobiography ; Opal Sunset : Selected Poems, 1958-2008 2008 selected work poetry -
The Sheer Power of Limelight : Clive James's Undimmed Poetry and the Television Years
2009
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , December 2009 - January 2010 no. 317 2009; (p. 7-11) -
Off the Shelf
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The West Australian , 8 December 2009; (p. 6)
— Review of Storm and Honey 2009 selected work poetry ; Opal Sunset : Selected Poems, 1958-2008 2008 selected work poetry ; The Best Australian Poetry 2009 2009 anthology poetry -
Poetic Justice
2009
single work
biography
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 22 October 2009; (p. 4)
-
The Roustabout
2008
single work
review
— Appears in: The New York Times Book Review , 28 September vol. 113 no. 39 2008; (p. 12)
— Review of Opal Sunset : Selected Poems, 1958-2008 2008 selected work poetry -
Off the Shelf
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The West Australian , 8 December 2009; (p. 6)
— Review of Storm and Honey 2009 selected work poetry ; Opal Sunset : Selected Poems, 1958-2008 2008 selected work poetry ; The Best Australian Poetry 2009 2009 anthology poetry -
Artist Perfects His Engineering Skills
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18-20 December 2009; (p. 24-25)
— Review of The Blaze of Obscurity : Unreliable Memoirs V 2009 single work autobiography ; Opal Sunset : Selected Poems, 1958-2008 2008 selected work poetry -
Poetic Justice
2009
single work
biography
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 22 October 2009; (p. 4) -
The Sheer Power of Limelight : Clive James's Undimmed Poetry and the Television Years
2009
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , December 2009 - January 2010 no. 317 2009; (p. 7-11) -
A One-Man Writers' Festival
2011
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Overland , Spring no. 204 2011; (p. 55-62) Peter Kirkpatrick on the poetic ambitions of Clive James, celebrity.