[09/09/26] Smither, Elizabeth: The Interview Rose

Auckland University Press, paperback

Publication Date: September 9, 2026

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In her twentieth poetry collection, Elizabeth Smither brings together a new ensemble of surprising images and charismatic companions. A herd of cows gathers around a radio to listen wide-eyed to a Mozart concerto. A frog leads us unhurriedly down the garden path. Jane Austen's Emma makes an appearance. A cat critiques Wittgenstein. And a flamboyant fabric rose rescues a job interview. Each poem in The Interview Rose is a bridge between the private self and the physical world, travelling the long route through art, religion, philosophy, and the pleasures of language.