"I do not like the stars / hanging great and silvery from the echoing / rafters of the school hall" begins the third verse of the prize-winning poem. It is a wonderfully particular image, and I like the way such a beautiful image is presented here as frightening. Many of the most interesting poems I read were not about the person writing but were poems about someone else, a friend or someone observed. "Phobia" starts out imagining the kind of Roman girl who might be called "Phobia" but is really a wonderfully clear-sighted, comic self-portrait, or portrait in the first-person. The character portrayed in this poem is as vivid as some of the great heroines of fiction - I'm reminded of Jane Gardam's Jessica Vye, in A Long Way From Verona. But "Phobia" is at the same time very well shaped as a poem, with its three seven-line verses each representing a surprising turn of thought. It is even punctuated almost impeccably, which is something I like very much in a poem.

"Beside her window" is a compelling portrait of a girl, Isobel, and at the same time an intriguing portrayal of a complex relationship, or feeling for Isobel on the part of the poem's speaker. The complex extended metaphor of the girl's identity as a tapestry, or embroidery of self, is returned to again and again in different ways, so that in one verse she is represented with even seams, in another with "frail endings"; and the relationship itself in one verse represents an unpicking, a complication, and in another verse is portrayed as a tidying up of loose ends, a stitching together. While the status of the relationship is uncertain, the two people are both clearly defined as individuals, with Isobel's fingernails surprisingly unbitten despite her tangled hair and her habit of cutting class, and even the speaker defined not just by the interest in Isobel but by the nicely inserted detail of the green eyes.

"Falling short" is a small and perfect poem, which concludes with the teacher having to admit, "Maria doesn't have hr head in the clouds / It's the sky that's in the wrong place." The poem puts the sky in its proper place, and Maria in her proper place in relation to it. The teacher, too, is put in her place in the poem.

These three poems stood out as prize-winning poems as soon as I came across them. But there were a number of other poems which were also strong contenders for one of the three prizes, and which could well have been given a place. All of the highly commended poems were seriously considered for one of the three places. "Confetti" skilfully uses the tab key and @ symbol to portray the drama of pre-wedding nerves, the tension and love between two sisters, and the tension and drama of their relationship with language. It is a brilliant poem. "Le Français" also portrays an interest in words that goes beyond the ordinary and suggests this poem too has been written by someone who, like Jane Gardam's Jessica Vye, is destined to be "a writer, beyond all possible doubt." "The Fiddler and his cat" has such a rhythm to it that it sounds like it is already a classic. It should be in every book of nursery rhymes or anthologies of poetry for children. "Simon" is almost like a short story, or a chapter in a novel, it presents such a complex and detailed portrayal of the character Simon and his "Simon look." The attention to this single moment is very moving, a celebration of what thinking can look like from the outside, something rarely observed or celebrated but here presented as worthy of "nuclear fireworks." "Photograph" was another poem that I found tremendously moving, and at the same time admired for its craft and poise. It captures how urgently nostalgic a photograph can make you feel, and gives just enough detail to suggest why the speaker might be so nostalgic for a time when "it's okay." The poem reads as if it could be a very potent charm or spell, with a power equal to the photograph.

"Photograph" is one of the many poems I read that I hope will be given to the person described or addressed in the poem. Many of the poems which were not considered for the shortlist of potential prize-winners would have a tremendous value as gifts, far beyond the value of any prize they could be awarded. I hope baby Skye reads the poem that celebrates her birth. Many of the short-listed poems I thought should be published, since I can imagine poems like "Falling Short" and "A Fiddler and his cat" being read by generations of readers. But many of the other poems I read should really be given to the one person they belong to, who will never love a published or prize-winning poem as much as the one written especially for them.

I loved reading all the poems that were sent in. The ones I have selected for distinctions though really did stand out very dramatically from the rest. It was very easy to select these poems - they selected themselves. Out of nearly 600 entries, these stood out with vivid imagery, quirky ideas, memorable characters, powerful feelings, an unusual use of language, or, often, a combination of some of these features. I hope these writers will keep on writing. I want to read more of what they write.

Winners

1) Phobia Emily Adlam, Diocesan School for Girls, Auckland
2) Beside Her Window Kirsti Whalen, Epsom Girls' Grammar School, Auckland
3) Falling Short Maria English, Samuel Marsden Collegiate School, Wellington

Highly Commended

Confetti, Mengyun Rao, Epsom Girls’ Grammar School
The Fiddler and His Cat, Claudia Mason, Raumati Beach School, Kapiti Coast
Le Français, Emily Adlam, Diocesan School for Girls, Auckland
Photograph, Alisha Vara, Rangi Ruru Girls’ School, Christchurch
Simon, Astrid Gulliksen, Home Schooled

Commended

Bats in the attic, Lucy Smith, Fendalton Open Air School, Christchurch
chemistry 101, Jess Fiebig , Papanui High School
Cometh what may, Tarquyn MacDonald, Hillmorton High School, Christchurch
Four & a half months, Alisha Vara, Rangi Ruru Girls’ School, Christchurch
Little Pink Boat, Bridget Moss, Samuel Marsden Collegiate School, Wellington
The Midnight Cat, Catherine Stevens, Samuel Marsden Collegiate School
Mischief the cat, Claudia Mason, Raumati Beach School, Kapiti Coast
The Night, Bonnie Brown, Wakatipu High School
Prehistoric Past, Michael Eden, Arrowtown Primary School
Sometimes I want to be a tree in a small bus station, Frank (Seok Hwa) Hong, Auckland International College



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