Let us praise the small evasions: the missed call the slight sore throat, the prior engagement ... From ‘Little Fibs’ Fibs, porkies, little white lies, absolute whoppers and criminal evasion the ways we can deceive each other are legion. Liar, Liar, Lick, Spit, the new collection by Otepoti poet and writer Emma Neale, is fascinated by our doubleness. Prompted by the rich implications in a line from Joseph Brodsky — ‘The real history of consciousness starts with one’s first lie’ — it combines a personal memoir of childhood lies with an exploration of wider social deceptions. (Poems/Poetry)