Now working on the next round of Teacher Resource Books, I am once again impressed by the poet's language use. His stylistic genius and mastery of form enables him to capture the visual essence of what he is describing in each poem. The first reading may not amaze you but each subsequent reading draws you into the situational moment, revealing details previously missed. You will find yourself scribbling down annotations for nearly every phrase. Sensory detail is compressed and if set poems were long, this could pose a problem for students but it is their brevity, each one only 1-3 stanzas, that makes it very easy to teach students how to pick out their layered meaning.
When coupled with the sheer abundance and creativity of the poetic techniques he has used and his genuinely distinctive use of visual focussed content and language, it is an excellent prescribed text choice. The poems themselves have also been well selected (not always the case with other options) for each is unique in subject matter and style and yet clearly linked by the poet's ability to evoke a scene, mood or issue. He really does make his reader 'see' with the mind's eye and share his reactions to the visual stimulus he focuses on.
HSC text selection is dictated by the first text chosen but I recommend having a look at Douglas Stewart. I have spoken to some teaches who are considering Kominos option as an easier 'Distinctive Voice' option, but there is so much students can discuss with regards to Stewart as a 'distinctively visual' poet.
Better get back to writing but wanted to fly a flag for giving this poet's work a second glance if you have not already finalised your text selection for 2015.
