Conversations with No-One

What do quarks and bosons have to do with faith? What does having a binary brain do for our sense of morality? Are the decisions we make in our life an expression of free will or simply the mysterious determined directives of creation? Are we self-determining creatures or just puppets?

Conversations with No-One is a collection of poems which trace the journey of one man, beginning in the seminary yet leading irrevocably into the worlds of neuroscience, quantum mechanics and genetics. It recounts a desperate search for personal meaning and purpose which turned into a three-decade long conversation with our humanity, from Gilgamesh’s search for immortality to Milo Wolff’s theory of the wave structure of matter. It reflects upon a journey through the wonder and horror of human existence, listening to the stories as they wrote our history, listening to the authors as they grappled with what it meant to be alive and conscious, to hear ourselves searching for answers to the questions which burned in our hearts and minds, to marvel at our remarkable ontology.

Conversations with No-One is a poetic, theological redaction of our self-apprehension informed by modern science, a view which challenges the very foundation of our cultural identity yet is in complete harmony with it. It is an invitation to ‘religare’, to go over again, and a reaffirmation of the ancient maxim ‘nosce te ipsum’ – to know yourself.

Contemplation and Other Poems

This book explores a fresh interpretation of everyday subjects through poetry. The author hopes it will help instil a way of seeing everyday events differently, or, at the very least, make you curious and help you form an opinion about them.

Condolences to Gaea

As our planet burns, people starve and species suffer extinction at an alarming rate, should we relegate ourselves as watchers, powerless to stave ignorance and greed’s insistent clamouring for more? Condolences to Gaea is a poet’s expression protesting the mindless, violent, selfish, often religious rationale for self over the wellbeing of our planet’s countless, marvellous inhabitants. The thematic arc encompasses paeans to those wonderful people recognizing Mankind’s imperative to intelligently address life’s accelerating demise and includes introspective musings by an author vacillating between dire pessimism and joyful optimism.

Collected Poems

Having lived in New Zealand, Britain and Germany, the author is amply experienced to comment on various aspects of British, New Zealand and German culture. Currently living in Germany, he visits Britain frequently. His interests include indigenous cultures and music sponsorship in Britain and abroad.

Here is a book of poems that will amuse and educate adults as well as older children. The poems cover a range of topics from young children to threatened species, and poems from classical Greek and Roman mythology. There are different cultures portrayed in a positive light while the best ideas taken from the worlds of psychology, stress management, and values reflecting religious principles are incorporated in an often amusing way.

If you want an easy read on the train or to relax with at home, this is a book that will entertain and give a feeling of hope and happiness in a world that often presents us with difficulties or perplexing problems.

Clairvoyance

“…What I needed was one look,

and with that,

I was clairvoyant.

Your soul and your mind,

the tiniest part of your heart,

I knew it all and I made a promise

that I would teach you

about you,

share my knowledge,

and from this fruitful kinship,

we rise and raise each other high,

me seeing all of you

and you there,

right by my side.”

Trying not to think about it but to see how it makes you feel.

Chewin Air

Dancing between the cosmos and daily life, Phil’s poetry weaves a magical path through the jungle of the modern world to a place of comfort and safety. His experiences have given him a unique perspective into pain, heartbreak, and loss so that he can best show the way out of these toxic environments. At the same time, he shows the beauty in simple things, pride in a good day’s work and joy for the love that shines everywhere. Life is a challenge, and we must be willing to meet it head on and with this book and his healing words, the way becomes clearer.

Many of his inspirations come from dreams, meditations or shamanic journeys and offer solutions generally considered esoteric. Each word is measured for its emotional impact and the stories are engaging because they have a ring of truth.

The poet employs many styles within the pages of this book from traditional forms like rhymes and sonnets as well as new, experimental free-forms. Any lover of language will enjoy this read.

Chasing Rainbows

“Maybe when you are grown up, perhaps have a husband or wife,

You look over your shoulder through the days of your life.

Little things come back to you, to your mind,

Poems, stories and it is a beautiful time that you will find.”

Chasing Rainbows is a charming collection of poems encompassing the views of the author’s sixteen-year-old self on topics such as everyday life, love, happiness, and much, much more.

Carving Magic

From poetry I have never gone. I only borrowed some mornings from the sunflowers and listened to their songs. The breeze brought sentences from far away, a mystic world displaying in my heart. Sound of love, aromas, colours, emotions. They were gathering at the gate of my mind, so I invited them in my inner world and together have created a genuine poetic space. A Simonic one. For returning the mornings to eternity. As we celebrate our togetherness, I invite you too for a cup of emotions and poetic thoughts poured between the lines.

Caprice

Embark on a whimsical journey through the myriad facets of memory in Caprice, where each page is an invitation to relive joys and pleasures, often overlooked or cast aside in the rush of the mundane. Amidst the storms and diatribes of the present, let’s ascend towards a realm where reflections blossom into a vibrant tapestry of experiences. Cast aside inhibitions, embrace fate’s whimsical tune, and traverse through this kaleidoscopic memoir that urges one to explore, evaluate, and revel in life’s capricious yet enriching dance.

Brushstrokes

And for a brief moment, we finally set aside

The shield that we don, beneath which our hearts hide

Brushstrokes is an exploration of the nuances of love, the ebb and flow of hope, as well as the search for meaning, clarity and purpose.

A moving composition of poems and prose, it recounts the tale of an electric encounter and ensuing, all-consuming love – with its irresistible highs and perilous lows – that sets into motion a cascade of events. What unfolds is a transformative story of self-discovery, unveiling one’s deepest fears, longings and dreams.

Timeless and universal in message, Brushstrokes invites us on an intimate journey steeped in passion and wonder.

Blue Moon Over Moorea

In Blue Moon over Moorea, an anthology of poems by Australian lawyer and poet Sally Gaunt, the author mines some of her favourite themes to remarkable effect.
Water in all its forms proves a constant inspiration, from ‘Swimming with Seahorses’ to the rapt, almost hallucinatory images of the title poem. Gaunt breathes new life into verse written for the reading community and brings a sharp eye and wry humour to the perennial subjects of love, sex and death.
Many of the poems are boldly imaginative recreations of historical events, typically centred on the sea, while the cycle of feather poems that opens the book considers the concept of manhood versus mayhem in a social setting.

Bloodlust

These pages are the sheets of my
Shredded soul
This is my spirit poured onto paper
My heart throbs relentlessly in the ink of
These pages
These are words drenched with desire
They must be heard
They are conscious
Alive
You hold in your hands
So much life