Simon West is a poet, translator, and Italianist. His first collection of poetry First Names was short-listed for the NSW Premier’s Prize in 2007, won the William Baylebridge Memorial Prize, and was commended in the 2007 FAW Anne Elder Award. The Selected Poetry of Guido Cavalcanti: A Critical English Edition, was published by Troubador Publishing, UK in 2009. Simon completed his PhD at the University of Melbourne where it was awarded the Chancellor’s Prize in 2004.