Theophilus Kwek is a prolific writer with five collections to his credit. His latest, Moving House, articulates a preoccupation with the themes of migration, belonging, colonial history, and the turbulent politics of the present. Kwek is uniquely qualified to tackle these themes. He grew up in Singapore, graduated with a degree in history and politics, and Read More
Like elderly actresses, performing until they drop, one boasts an errant streak […] (‘These roses you gave me’) Perhaps it’s unsurprising that these lines come from a poem with the central metaphor of flowers. Vicki Feaver, more than almost anyone, has seized that subject, daring to write it – as a woman – not in Read More
Rebecca Watts’ second poetry collection Red Gloves is a gathering of objects and their willingness to remain or disappear, along with our willingness, as humans, to stay or to leave; it is an embodiment of a decline transpiring right under our noses. The author uses a hobnob of narrative and lyrical techniques, creating arcane, uninterrupted Read More
Errant is a fascinating collection that delves into the poet’s past experiences, with influences from other writings and encounters with other creative minds. Gabriel Levin’s sixth collection doesn’t fail to uncover, intrigue and take the reader through a myriad of places journeying between the poet’s homelands in the West and the Middle East. Levin who Read More
Songs drift from open windows: the radio, someone washing dishes, a tv, voices—more of an insight into people’s lives than the silent aquarium of closed glass. In Merrie Joy William’s collection, these open windows lead to childhood memories, romantic discovery, loss, life, faith and more. Her view into the past is never overly sentimental, but full Read More
The sober aubergine cover of the latest issue of Gutter is distinct from the magazine’s customary vibrant jackets. In collaboration with guest editors Alycia Pirmohamed and Jay G Ying, Gutter makes a stand against tokenisation in this celebration of Black Asian and Minority Ethnic writers from Scotland and across the world. Exploring the multi-faceted aspects Read More
It is not hard to spot Joelle Taylor across a busy theatre foyer. The tall blonde quiff gives her away, but as I approach, I notice an open confidence that suggests performance poet too. I meet her on the penultimate day of the StAnza poetry festival, less than a fortnight before such gatherings become a Read More
Scottish poet Gordon Meade releases his tenth collection of poetry with an approach towards awareness. He forms lines to accompany the stills taken by Canadian photographer Jo-Anne McArthur. The photos are a peek into another point of view, and Meade puts a face—and a name—to the images, breathing life into a moment captured in time. Read More
Guide the small boat of my body back to my self. Tell me which path brings me home. (‘Mercy’) Róisín Kelly’s first full collection (her chapbook, Rapture, was published in 2016, by Southword Editions) explores that very potent Irish Roman Catholicism with its personal and political resonances, and weighs it up against the island’s older, Read More
Nineveh is an astounding debut collection full of originality and adding to the vast and rich culture of Jewish poetry. It uses the stylistic device of hyperbole to disclose some of our self-destructive habits in the age of media. The author borrows, rethinks and comments on many of the literary greats before; Yehuda Halevi, Paul Read More