Janet Sutherland (Shearsman Books, 2023); pbk: £16.95 Janet Sutherland is a British poet and a co-founder of the Needlewriters cooperative. In this her fifth collection from Shearsman Books, The Messenger House, she aims to better understand societies on local and global levels, and `why things happened as they did`. This book was created based on Read More
Liam Guilar(Shearsman Books, 2023); pbk £14.95 History is a record of brutalitytempered by outbursts of idealism (‘Maxim 1’) Liam Guilar’s A Man of Heart transforms historical record into contemporary poetry, unearthing narratives of 5th-century Britain by blending reimagination with realism. His compelling sequel to A Presentment of Englishry continues his poetic retelling of the Read More
Robin Fulton Macpherson (Shearsman Books, 2020); pbk, £10.95 Robin Fulton Macpherson’s collection opens with the observation of birds in the natural world. The perspective of the viewer observing crows watching a heron seem to merge with that of the corvids: From the black lace of a leafless birchseven crows seem to be watching one heron rowing air Read More
Most famously, Seamus Heaney remarked on ‘chiming the ancient with the modern’. In Ghost Passage, Josephine Balmer’s task is similarly charged. Her rich publication record includes her own poetry, Classical verse translations, editorship of anthologies and, arguably most closely in the context of this latest collection, Piecing Together the Fragments: translating Classical Verse, Creating Contemporary Poetry (OUP, 2013). This is a poet very ready to write this book.
The mythological state of history can cast a shadow on the apparent mundanity of contemporary life. It can be tempting to look at the world and proclaim that we have reached the end of a time where people can look at the world around them with childish wonder. It takes poetic works such as Ruth Mcllroy’s The pot of Earth and the Iron Pot to reinvigorate the majesty of day-to-day life, dissipating the numbness that often accompanies familiarity.
Jeanette L. Clariond’s The Goddess of Water transmogrifies reality, bringing the reader into her world and holding them long after they have left the book behind. Clariond has published many collections and her ability to not only write poetry but craft it into such a deliberate, thoughtful structure speaks to her experience. Every page proves a maze, drawing the reader in and leading them through the rich tapestry of Aztec myth, spoken with striking lyricism and intertwined skilfully with the all too contemporary subject of femicide and gendered violence in South America.
Lesley Harrison(Shearsman Books, 2020); pbk £10.95 In her first full-length collection after multiple pamphlet publications, Lesley Harrison envisions a voyage towards healing humanity’s fractured bond with the natural world. Through archival documents, past voyages, and local myths deftly explored, Harrison ties the past and present together in the shared space of the North Sea. The Read More
Tim Allen’s A Democracy of Poisons, his third collection with Shearsman, possesses rich, surreal imagery—visions that float or collide with the reader, betraying his avant tendencies. However, his dreams aren’t pleasant—they’re anxious, tense.
From the pages of Harry Guest’s collection of poetry emerge forests, fields of grass, Norwegian fjords, and nature-dwelling creatures. The title is poignant for it reflects on relationships, the passage of time, and a sense of place. Adding to a substantial oeuvre (poetry publications, several novels, and translations from French, German, and Japanese) Last Harvest presents a retrospective view of Guest’s life as it nears its completion.
Linda Black’s fourth poetry collection, Then, is a twisting and turning thread that is pulled through the layers of emotion and experience that form the fabric of life. In a stylised and sophisticated manner, yet also playful and childlike, Black manages to weave multiple incarnations of herself throughout her writing.
