You are warmly invited to attend the launch of In Between Angels and Animals (Arlen House) the second collection by Irish poet, Dr Emily Cullen

Date: Thursday, 7 Nov 2013
6:00pm – 7:30pm
Location: Rooftop Garden, Level 6, Daniel Mannix Building, Australian Catholic University, 115 Victoria Parade, Fitzroy, 3065.

The book will be launched by Hon. Associate Professor Frances Devlin-Glass (Deakin University). Frances is a noted scholar of Irish & Irish-Australian literature and the founder of Bloomsday in Melbourne Inc.

Emily will also give a short reading of some of the poems from the collection.

The book addresses various states of in-betweenness, such as the transition from single woman to wife and mother. Echoing its title, there is also a sense of the animal and the divine as some of the poems grapple with the corporeality of pregnancy and motherhood, and the illumination that maternal love brings.

Emily’s debut poetry collection, No Vague Utopia, published by Ainnir Publishing in 2003, addressed themes from the perspective of a younger woman in a different decade in Ireland. The Stinging Fly, a top Irish and international literary journal had this to say about her first book: “With No Vague Utopia, Emily Cullen has produced a gem … Her language is rich and vibrant, and her metre musical and textured. While each poem is a personal expression of one woman’s experience, Cullen’s ability to vividly describe and render these experiences ensures that her readers can recreate each moment with her.” (The Stinging Fly, 2004).

An early critical response to In Between Angels and Animals states: “The subject matter has widened to include marriage, birth, parenting; the gigantic steps that need a new vocabulary … The result is a further exploration into private territory, gradually giving it shape and carving, smoothing, so that it can make sense to others.” (The Lantern Review, No. 8, Summer 2013).

A review has just been published in Tintean, the online magazine which aims to provide serious comment and an independent perspective on a wide range of Australian/Irish topics.

Emily, also a harpist and scholar, works at the School of Arts and Sciences, Australian Catholic University in Melbourne. She is a member of the DLS writers group.