With English Subtitles is Carmine Starnino at his most inventive. The poems in this collection are exceptionally focused, musical and inviting. Household objects, Italian relatives, Yukon landscapes, worst-case scenarios and relationships are pushed onto the page with new-found urgency and delight. Here for the first time, Starnino has set aside the restraint of his earlier work in favour of a bold swagger and forthright musicality.

Starnino's fascination with old objects is translated into poems that combine history and close scrutiny with lively personification and corresponding sound. These poems capture the true energy and anima of supposedly inanimate items. The aged suitcase exudes an air of hurry and persistence, "still champing to be off." The iron gives a "suspirating hush as it catches its breath." For each of these items, Starnino locates a pulse and charts the specifics of its breathing. Coupled with this energy is a focus on the process of decay and the beauty contained therein. Junkyard, charity auction, failed relationship and autumn all center on the varied and tenuous aesthetic of rust.

The poems in this collection are sensual, abundant and rushing. Starnino builds towers of sound and rhythm, introducing all the whim and decadence of bygone days to modern pragmatics and speech. His inventive use of language and personable interruptions draw readers inside an understanding of the world that is both grounded and imaginative. The result is a watertight and satisfying collection: poetry that proves resoundingly that art and life depend on one another for inspiration.

This book is a Smyth-sewn paperback with cover flaps. The text was typeset by Andrew Steeves in Octavian and printed on Rolland Zephyr Laid paper. The cover is hand-printed letterpress.

Winner of the 2004 A.M. Klein Prize for Poetry and winner of the 2006 F.G. Bressani Literary Prize.