Behind the Mirror by Mardi May
Mardi May inherited ‘a gene for curiosity’.
In Behind the Mirror, her autobiography in poems, her habit of ‘always asking Why?’ is matched with a delight in the power of words. Whether she is searching for insights into the troubled years of childhood and family tensions, remembering with beautiful tenderness happier times of a second marriage and farm life, or confronting the sad ending of aged care and dementia for her husband, her experiences feel very real and poignantly recognizable.
Her poems are as vividly detailed as film scenes, enriched by both her curiosity and a generous desire to not only record the story, but to also understand what lies below the surface. From the early innocence of a street of many nationalities where children feel ‘all the same’ to the final years of widowhood and the salvation of ‘writing (herself) into each day’, this is compelling poetry, fearlessly honest in its documenting of the challenges of a life, and gracious in its acknowledgement of the other people who have been ‘behind the mirror’ and crucially important in that life.
Book Launch
You are cordially invited to the launch of Behind the Mirror, a poetry collection by Mardi May, launched by Jan Napier.
Friday, 12 June 2026
6.00 pm to 7.30 pm
Midland Sports Complex
45 Patterson Drive, Middle Swan WA 6056
Pre-order copies of Behind the Mirror to be posted after the launch on 12 June 2026
Behind the Mirror by Mardi May (includes postage within Australia)
A$30.00
Behind the Mirror by Mardi May (includes international postage)
A$40.00