Smyth’s sixth collection is one with its gaze focused backwards. Many of the poems are a means of preserving memories in print. While this could mean too heavy a dollop of nostalgia, Smyth avoids the saccharine through the vivacity of his images. In the first of the four sections, memories jump into the reader’s consciousnessContinue reading “Gerard Smyth: The Mirror Tent Review”
Category Archives: Poetry
‘Morning in the Burned House’ by Margaret Atwood Reviewed
This collection by Atwood explores the view of femininity and female experience. Like her famous novel ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ there’s a real sense of anger, offset by a directness and black humour. It is divided into a number of stages. It opens with a draining sense of ennui, illustrated in phrases such as “the centuryContinue reading “‘Morning in the Burned House’ by Margaret Atwood Reviewed”
The Art of Falling, Kim Moore
It’s not very often I feel compelled to buy a book at a reading (mostly because I’m trying to cut down on the amount of books I own, not because the poets are shite) but I knew I had to own this one as soon as Moore finished reading her first poem. It’s a collectionContinue reading “The Art of Falling, Kim Moore”
‘Safe Home’ by Mícheál McCann Review
Mícheál McCann’s debut pamphlet ‘Safe Home’ was published by Green Bottle Press in 2020. From the opening mini-sequence ‘Études’, there’s a strong sense of musicality and cadence. There’s also a strong instance of McCann’s signature knack of rooting even the grandiose to the everyday when the poem moves from the beauty of the orchestral musicContinue reading “‘Safe Home’ by Mícheál McCann Review”
Lifeboat Press Pamphlets
Kevin Breathnach Morphing Firstly, the aesthetics. These pamphlets are things of beauty – the font, cover design, colour palette – even the weight of the paper is satisfying. Published in 2020, Morphing is Breathnach’s debut pamphlet. The opening poem ‘A Letter from a Number’ is unsettling in its playful use of language, dominated by phrasesContinue reading “Lifeboat Press Pamphlets”
Jacob Polley, Jackself
Winner of the TS Eliot award in 2016, this is Polley’s fourth collection. It’s unsettling from the opening poem ‘The House that Jack Built’, a poem that focuses on destruction. We see time pass through the lifespan of timber – despite how much manipulation humans exert on the wood, it lasts. It’s unnerving to beContinue reading “Jacob Polley, Jackself”
Leontia Flynn, The Radio
The collection opens with a sequence of poems that explore the fragility of the mind. The second poem ‘Alzheimer’s Villanelle’ is an astonishing piece of work. The choice of form is fantastic – the echoes mimic the confusion of the mind and some of the visual descriptions are incredibly visceral, creating a very unsettling feel.Continue reading “Leontia Flynn, The Radio”
Sharon Olds, Stag’s Leap
Published in 2012 and winner of the T.S. Eliot prize and the Pulitzer Prize for poetry, Stag’s Leap charts the poet’s journey through the end of a thirty year marriage. Poignant, passionate and unrelentingly personal, it’s an astonishing collection. The collection follows a chronological order as Olds takes us through the breakdown of her marriageContinue reading “Sharon Olds, Stag’s Leap”
Seán Hewitt: Tongues of Fire
Published by Cape in 2020, Tongues of Fire is Hewitt’s first full collection after the remarkable ‘Lantern’, a pamphlet published by Offord Road Press. It’s difficult to write about this collection without a heavy reliance on superlatives. It’s a wondrous book, full of hope and beauty. There’s a lot of darkness too – grief weighsContinue reading “Seán Hewitt: Tongues of Fire”
Penguin Modern Poets 6
The sixth edition of this series is a pantheon of contemporary female poets. The book opens with Claudia Rankine. Through her poems we accompany a series of women as they navigate racism, the strange intimacy of pregnancy and the difficulties facing women who choose to step from the expected path of motherhood. The poems hereContinue reading “Penguin Modern Poets 6”
Nicola Heaney 