Gregory O'Brien (1) (1961–)

When I first encountered O'Brien's poetry when I was much younger I wasn't a fan. But I think now that was because I wasn't sufficiently mature. I thought I knew all about what poetry was, which is to say that I had ideas about what it should be. And any time you have ideas about what something or someone should be, it can blind you to the surprised of the nature of the thing or person in front of you. This is a collection that rewards being dipped into a little at a time. The paintings themselves are sufficiently complex, and rendered with surprising clarity in a small format given the size of some of the originals. The poems can be as thorny at first glance as matagouri. But there are many where you read them smoothly and then you are stopped in your tracks by something that is just a little off, an oddity here and there, a word that you skimmed over and to which you return and discover it wasn't what you thought it was, or the punctuation made all the difference. There are a couple of throwaway, as there always are in a collection, but the range and depth of both paintings and poems--in dialog with each other but not, as O'Brien notes, one illustrating the other--is impressive. Just how good O"brien is was for me encapsulated in the poem titled "Sea kelp observed at Makara Beach, on the day of Sameul Beckett's death, 22 December 1989." The poem is a single word, and for both its subject and occasion, it is perfect.… (más)

This is both a charming and a poignant book - charming because of Percy's illustrations and sad because his was a life which had so much more to give us.

While this is not a biography, we do get a picture of a New Zealander born in Stratford - Taranaki, but who lived most of his life in London.I will look forward to a full biography in the future. Gregory O'Brien has made an impressive start to recording his life and work.

It is copiously illustrated with Percy's designs for a wide range of materials including the School Journal and children's books such as The Wind in the Willows and the Woodland Gospels. There are some particularly happy photos of Graham Percy as a young man, but no portraits of him in later years - maybe he wanted his work to be his front to the world.

Graham Percy's work and life were so rich and diverse and Gregory O'Brien has conveyed this admirably. It is a book to dip into and to go back to. It has great book lists but unfortunately no index.… (más)