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by Magdalena Ball
between your left and right hemisphere I walked a dangerous line
As with her first poetry collection, Quark Soup, Magdalena
Ball's Repulsion Thrust tackles big subjects not often the
fodder of poetry: quantum physics, astronomy, time travel, ecological
destruction, and technological singularity, all viewed through the
lens of the human condition. A tough, take-no-prisoners collection
that is not for the faint hearted.
MP3 Reading of "Spirals," one of the poems in the collection: spirals.mp3
Review Excerpts "Wonderful. The work covers a lot of ground while keeping a poetic sensibility, which is hard to do. We need more singularity-aware art." Ray Kurzweil "In poetry the thin line that divides the hermetic from the obvious is dangerous ground and not all poets can tread there without destruction. Magdalena is comfortable here and not only treads but dances." Bob Williams "Precise and exciting. Words sizzle on the page. Images steeped in the physical world work beautifully to illuminate complex emotions and states of mind. Magdalena Ball is an important poet." Joan Schweighardt, author of Gudrun's Tapestry, Virtual Silence and other novels. "This is a book of poetry for anyone who has been in love and knows what it is to live in the twenty-first century, but who is more than a little scared of what might happen if all the lights went out. Take these poems seriously. They may just have some of the answers you require." Catherine Edmunds, author wormwood, earth and honey
"Magdalena
Ball creates a stunning impression with her first full-length
collection, Repulsion Thrust. Her poems speak of
experience, wisdom, and curiosity and welcome the reader to
embrace a voyeuristic ride. Beautiful, haunting, and honest,
Repulsion Thrust is a powerful collection with a "poems of clarity, epiphany and stark existential awareness. A bracing, imaginative collection of poetry that rewards repeated reading." Sue Bond, M/C Reviews "Using physics and philosophy, phobias and facets of astronomy and math, the poems in Magdalena Ball’s new book, Repulsion Thrust, are manuals and kones to scientifically and whimsically imagined new worlds; they are forthright and experimental, they are futures you really hope are not true. Reading her book is like reading the poetic version of 1984 by George Orwell, where humans are really not human any more. And you might even feel like you are smarter, more hip to science." Nanette Rayman Rivera, writer and editor “A heart-felt exploration of the "black dog" that has the courage to leap between the crags and crevices of the daily round. Justin Lowe, Bluepepper
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"To paraphrase one of Ball’s lines in “Equinox,” she slices great slabs of poetry from her tongue and pen. The buzzard light of dawn contrasts with the prophecy that in our digital age, the flick of a switch can doom us to literal and emotional darkness. Anyone who thinks science is cold should take a microscope to Ball’s universe in which electromagnetic radiation from emotional emissions creates a tiny scientific revolution. This collection of poems is enough to inspire creative writing majors to switch to astronomy and physics. Perhaps maybe not. But Ball's verses will cause a paradigm shift." Kristin Johnson, poet, author, screenwriter and founder of the Poet Warrior Project "Ball’s poetry is wholesome, blending the rational and the irrational, the physical and the metaphysical, together with the real and the surreal. The result is a an unusual and compelling book. Repulsion Thrust is a poetry book to be read very slowly in order to savour every word, every metaphor, and to immerse oneself in the rich and colourful imagery, to be touched by despair but also by hope and love." Beatriz Copello author under the gums' long shade"This debut full-length poetry collection by Australian poet Magdalena Ball is full of poetic thrust, propelling the reader through thought-provoking and beautifully crafted considerations of love, illness, identity, genetics, the environment, planet – and more" Sarah James, poet, blogger "From time to time poetry comes close to the majesty of universal knowledge; I think you are playing in the same string Marinetti once played: "We stand on the last promontory of the centuries. Why should we look back when what we want is to break down the mysterious doors of the impossible?", this he wrote in 1909 when founded Futurism Movement, and Marinetti hadn’t the faintest idea of the great leap men would achieve 100 years later. There you are, Magdalena, with Repulsion Thrust at the edge of a new revolution in poetry." Beto Palaio litteratour.blogspot.com
"REPULSION THRUST is not just a parochial anthology of poems for investigators of natural law. The scientific references will only whet the interest of those unfamiliar with the technical terminology, not confuse or put them off. Ball's poetry qualifies as an unsentimental sojourn through the naked brain. Her jagged lines prevent readers from resting too easy in their comfy chairs. A mild, anxiety-provoking mood pervades every page. The occasional "cigarette break" comfort arrived only at the times when I was reminded of Natalie Angier's outstanding science writing in "The Canon." HH, Author, Amazon Reviewer
"Insightfulness is evident in line on line as she exhumes layers of self and the ‘other’." J.R.McRae, author of Mending Lucille
"There's a futuristic or other-worldly feel to many of the poems, which I found intriguing because it's not often that science and poetry dances hand-in-hand in quite this way, but physics (and quantum physics no less) certainly plays an interesting role in a number of these poems. My copy is comfortably dog-eared now as I couldn't resist marking the poems that created the biggest impact on me, and that I'll undoubtedly be returning to." Paul Burman, author of The Snowing and Greening of Thomas Passmore
Media for Repulsion Thrust "Poet a force of nature" article in the Lakes Mail newspaper Second Life interview at Netera's Coffee Lounge Interview/profile on Harry Gilleland Writes Interview in podcast on Radio 2CC "Talking Canberra" with Mike Welsh Ask Your University
and/or Public Library to order in a copy of Repulsion Thrust.
Most libraries order books based upon patron requests, so all you have
to do is put in a request and they will probably order it.
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In the ice
tunnel cleft