| Dunedin Writers |
|
HEAR our writers To download an audio file on a Windows computer right click on the link and select "Save file as" To download an audio file in Apple Mac computer "Control- Click" on the link. Streaming audio: Streaming audio:
Thomas Bracken, born in Ireland, came to Dunedin from Australia at the age of 26. He made his living as a newspaper editor and politician but his main claim to fame is as the writer of the poem ‘God Defend New Zealand’ which was to become our national anthem. Streaming audio: A.H. Reed is remembered as many things: publisher, writer and longdistance walker. A passage from his autobiography describes how he began to give rare books and manuscripts to the Dunedin Public Library. The Library has built on his legacy and made it into one of New Zealand’s most notable special collections. Streaming audio: Charles Brasch, poet, editor and philanthropist, travelled widely and saw himself as ‘a citizen of the English language’, but his home was always Dunedin, where ‘I tramp my streets into recognition’. Lines from his poems tell of his attachment to the city. Streaming audio: Ruth Dallas spent much of her life in Dunedin. A poet and children’s writer, she published over 20 books. Local landscapes and Eastern philosophy frequently captured her poetic imagination. Hear Ruth reading ‘In Day Becalmed’. Streaming audio: Hone Tuwhare, New Zealand’s most distinguished Maori poet was Burns Fellow in 1969 and again in 1974. He lived in Dunedin for the following 18 years, collaborating with the artist Ralph Hotere, who illustrated four of his books. Tuwhare is heard here reading ‘Rain’, ‘Sun o (2)’ and an excerpt from ‘Da da dumm’. Streaming audio: World-famous writer Janet Frame was born and died in Dunedin. The city features in her poems, her autobiography and as the setting for her novel The Rainbirds. Streaming audio: Born in Dunedin in 1926, James K. Baxter became his generation’s leading poet and a controversial social activist and commentator. His Otago poems recall Brighton, where he grew up, the city of Dunedin, and Central Otago, which he regarded as a holy wilderness. The audio includes Baxter reading ‘The Fallen House’. Streaming audio: English-born Roger Hall is one of New Zealand’s best-known and highly-regarded playwrights. He lived in Dunedin between 1977 and 1995, and his close association with the Fortune Theatre continues. He reads a passage from his autobiography Bums on Seats. Streaming audio: One of New Zealand’s best-loved contemporary poets, Cilla McQueen, now lives in Bluff but has spent most of her life in Dunedin. Her creative work has earned her many honours, and she has published ten collections and a CD of her work. Cilla reads ‘Low Tide’, ‘Aramona’, ‘Recipe for One’ and ‘Silver’. Streaming audio:
To read the works of Dunedin writers, and to find out more about them, we recommend that you visit any branch of Dunedin Public Libraries.
|