LES WICKS
Review
Appetites of Light
by Dr Christine Ferrari
Lecturer in English,
and Film, Humanities and Social Sciences
Charles Sturt University
Les Wicks was writer-in-residence at Booranga in 2000. This collection of nine poems (his sixth) were 'polished' during his stay in the writers' cottage. The poems in Appetites of Light are loosely based on an exploration of light as an active player in a range of situations.
Coloured signal lights; the sudden illumination of 'primary light'; the sickly wash of 'yellow street light', and the unnatural glow of a casino, act as metaphors evoking the atmosphere and tone of lost opportunities in Three Rail Workers'; of the gritty reality for street kids in 'Brat Girl and Boy'; of a surreal S&M experience in 'Cry'; of the intense 'human fusion energies-/ jealousy and fear' as a polyester clad couple at sundown, try their luck with a poker machine in 'Buffalo Dreaming in Pyrmont', only to lose the lot at the tables.
In 'Off Highway', 'a clear impertinent sky-breathing air' 'is true pure barring / the faintest whiff of petrol'. The departure of the disdainful Judith has left the speaker 'adrift': 'Lost / but not uncomfortable' in the setting the woman dismissed as 'suburban'.
Reading these poems, I'm reminded of the way Canadian novelist, Michael Ondaatje creates rich patterns of light to throw characters, stories and events into relief. Wicks lights the desires, ideas, acceptance, and epiphanies of his everyday Australian protagonists in a similarly rich, impressionistic, resonant way.
A meditation on the 'path to peace through rain' in 'Cloudburst': (The rain in Sydney / is a violation/ We expect anything else) leads to 'A hand flashed / through clouds and fogged up glass' - a lightening flash of brilliancy that disappears as it's thought. In 'Out and About' though the speaker finds the 'best truths / rendered down' in his child's '12 years old' vulnerable attentiveness to the crowd and speeches at an anti-racism rally-'A rainbow demolition in the early spring'.
I found this an immediately accessible and thought-provoking collection. Appetites of Light is one of the pocket chapbooks (A6 size...) beautifully produced by PressPress. The designer's attention to detail makes the books perfect gifts. The various titles are available only by mail order from PO Box 94, Berry, NSW 2535 or online at http://www.presspress.com.au/. Appetities of Light is a 'steal' at $7.70.
Originally appeared in the Booranga News, May 2002