New Zealand author (1967- )
If you can't be a bad poet at seventeen, with your brother dying just down the corridor, what hope is there for poetry?
BERNARD BECKETT
Lullaby
The puzzle of time, the mystery of creation, the problem of evil, the enigma of knowledge, the state of soul, the vexations of probability theory of the nature of God's grace, all reduced to a single question. What does it mean, in a world of God's creation, that man is free to choose between the paths of good and evil?
BERNARD BECKETT
August
Fear is ever-present, waiting to be called to the surface. Change brought fear, and fear brought destruction.
BERNARD BECKETT
Genesis
Unable to attribute misfortune to chance, unable to accept their ultimate insignificance within the greater scheme, the people looked for monsters in their midst.
BERNARD BECKETT
Genesis
I try not to be surprised. Surprise is the public face of a mind that has been closed.
BERNARD BECKETT
Genesis
I understand the link between the commands I type and the actions the computer performs can be reduced to a predictable input/output network, albeit a massively complex one. And thanks to this knowledge, I do not attribute magical qualities to the machine. I don't get angry at it. I don't try to read its mood, interpret the emotional subtext of its communications with me, or start to sulk if it takes too long to boot up. I don't take it personally--most of the time.
BERNARD BECKETT
Falling for Science
Life is a sculpture, chip, chip, chip. In good time, with good patience, even the most formidable rock can be shaped.
BERNARD BECKETT
Malcolm & Juliet
The next bit is tricky. By holding on with only one hand, and wedging the corresponding foot between the pipe and the wall, I swing out far enough to feel my outstretched fingers brush the window ledge. Not quite far enough. Life is like that.
BERNARD BECKETT
Deep Fried