The Long Way Home

'Another delightful collection of poems from John Egan. What graphic pictures he draws - one has a sense of actually being there. He is able to lead the reader into realms of imagination where the poem itself materialises into reality. I am always delighted with the Australian flavours that John can so easily summon up. He seems able to harness the atmosphere of his poetry and to grasp and record poignant events so accurately. One can feel the heat of summer, smell the wattle and see the sunlight sparkle on the waters.' - Mary Bramston 'John Egan is an acute observer. His imagery is richly imaginative, but clear and precise, re ecting a compelling view of the world around us. His poetry blends an acute awareness of the nuances of language with an underlying sense of the signi cance of the personal view in re ecting our experience of life. He has a particularly happy knack of conveying the idea that things matter, without labouring the point. His poems offer us new ways of seeing familiar things, with beauty, sensibility and. at times, a sharp wit. They form a substantial contribution to contemporary Australian poetry.' - Robert Dickins