“Flying into the hands of strangers” is a leap of faith into the unknown. Lived childhood memories of migration alienation evolve into a much larger narrative of interminable estrangement, mirroring Jeltje’s growing despair at the disappearing natural world.

The collection is accompanied by a CD by “jeltje & friends”.
containing poetry and music based on poems from the collection “Flying into the hands of strangers”.
The musicians in these collaborations of “jeltje & friends” are Sjaak de Jong (guitar, bass), Graham Twist (bass), Robert Calvert (soprano saxophone), Harry Williamson (six string acoustic guitar, bass, drum program), Chris Young (flute, clarinet, bass clarinet) and Robert George (drums), as well as the improvising group UQ (Sjaak de Jong, Mark Lewis, Anna Fern, Eliane Montreux, Polly Christie, Edgar Loutit and Yasmine Shoobridge).

 

Review by Susan Hawthorn (Plumwood Mountain)