PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
Janaka Malwatta was born in Kandy, the hill capital of Sri Lanka, grew up in London, and moved to Brisbane in 2010. He writes poems about his experiences as an immigrant in two continents. He also writes narrative poetry, often exploring Sri Lankan stories. He has performed poetry in Brisbane, including at the Queensland Poetry Festival, and has been published in Cordite Poetry Review, Rabbit Poetry and in Peril magazine. He was the Sri Lankan voice on the ESPNCricinfo.com blog The Cordon. He is one half of the poetry and tabla collective Dubla. blackbirds don't mate with starlings is his first full-length collection of poetry.
'Razor-sharp and resonant, blackbirds don't mate with starlings is a collection to savour and re-read for its beauty and power.' Mirandi Riwoe 'A blazing debut collection that examines the experience of race and racism, deconstructs empire and colonialism, and interrogates the inherent violence of intergenerational erasure. Spare and cutting, these poems - found and rescued and lived within - go directly to the heart and realign the reader's mind.' David Stavanger
