A couple of recent reviews, though behind a paywall, appeared recently at Uplift Poetry, including some generous words from Jack Anthony for John Bartlett’s poetry chapbook In the Spaces between Stars Lie Shadows
Thumbing through my initial notes, I discovered a scribble that read: “It is sad, there is some dread, but also unwavering hope”. I didn’t link this note to a particular poem; it nonetheless works as an overall reflection of this book’s tone, and perhaps its ethos. In the Spaces between Stars Lie Shadows is an incredibly impressive and valuable reading experience. Its emotional intelligence, artistry, and advocacy are as impactful as if it were a collection three times its actual length.
– along with a review, by Tori Brown. of Kristyn J. Saunders’ September 2025 collection Slipstream.
(If you’re interested in poet John Bartlett’s work, his memoir ‘love and its penalties‘ appeared in May 2026 — 240 pgs, $25 within Australia, including postage:
John Bartlett grew up in country South Australia on the Murray as a pious Catholic boy before attending boarding school in Adelaide. As a teenager he entered a Catholic seminary in Sydney where he spent seven years training to be a Catholic priest before going overseas to work in Mindanao in the Southern Philippines.
There he was exposed to the political turmoil of the Marcos’ Martial Law years and the ongoing wars against Islamic separatists. In 1980 he left the priesthood and returned to Australia and Melbourne where he came out as gay at the height of the HIV AIDS pandemic.
He took on a variety of jobs, including kitchen hand, masseur and film extra before turning to professional writing and subsequently published fiction, non-fiction and poetry – twelve books in all.
At its heart this is a story of falling in love too easily and too often.)
