Words Unlimited

Poets on Childhood

To the Foundling Museum in Bloomsbury last Saturday afternoon for the launch of the new anthology, Tokens For The Foundlings.

Edited by poet Tony Curtis, the book brings together over 80 poems by over 70 poets, including leading names from either side of the Atlantic: Carol Ann Duffy, Gillian Clarke, Seamus Heaney, Sean O'Brien, Don Paterson, Thomas Lux, August Kleinzahler.

In the museum's upper gallery we were treated to an hour of readings, by a host of poets including Helen Dunmore, George Szirtes, Mimi Khalvati, Dannie Abse, Rosie Shepperd, Jane Clarke and Curtis himself - all of whom have work in the book.

Published by Seren, it's a handsome volume, a wonderful collection of contemporary work. And given its themes - childhood, orphans, families - it's a book that will appeal to the general reader, too.

As the poets have donated their work, all proceeds from the book go to support the work of the Foundling Museum. What's not to like?

You can get a copy, here.

Poetry London Launch

To the South Bank yesterday evening for the launch of Poetry London, Spring issue, No 71. An evening of first class poetry with readings from contributors to the magazine - Sam Riviere, Amanda Dalton, Paul Batchelor and Selima Hill. But in that top line up Amanda Dalton's reading stood out. Mesmerising poetry. She read the sequence 'Feral', which appears in Poetry London, and other poems from her brand new collection, Stray. The book is just out from Bloodaxe and long awaited. 

There's lots of good things in PL's new issue, including Kathryn Maris's interview with Christopher Reid.

I'm excited to announce that I'll be publishing, very soon, a in-depth interview, here on Words Unlimited, with Amanda Dalton about her writing of Stray. Watch this space ...

Book of The Month - January

The book that stands out from my reading this month is Carol Ann Duffy's The Bees.

I loved the variety of subject, tone and pace. Duffy is a poet who looks out at the world. Here you'll find her sharp gaze turned onto politics, ecology, Englishness, mother and daughters, sickness and death, plus, of course those bees.

Why is Duffy so consistently good? For me, what I come back to admire and enjoy is her confident and playful relationship to language. Reading Duffy makes me want to write. She makes ordinary words dance and sing, and makes it seem effortless. She challenges, dazzles. She makes you think, and makes you laugh.

She has a marvellous ear for the way we all play - or used to play as children - with language in everyday speech. Her box of sonic 'tricks' includes alliteration, repetition, lists, simple rhymes surprisingly placed. Often punning and playful but with serious intent. See 'Virgil's Bees.'

The bee poems are threaded throughout as connective tissue, buzzing in and out between the other work. Bees take us back to literary tradtion, 'Where the bee sucks,' and forward to consider the precarious balance of the planet.

Duffy may not have won the T S Eliot Prize but she certainly stole the show at the readings at the Royal Festival Hall earlier this month. In the end what makes Duffy a poet I want to return to is the power and persuasiveness of her voice. She is a dazzling performer, with a brilliant sense of timing. Whether on the page or the stage you trust, have confidence in, her voice, feel her presence. 

Hear her talk to Mark Lawson on Front Row about the writing of The Bees.

The T S Eliot Prize Awards Ceremony

To the remarkable Habersdashers’ Hall last night – never seen so much wood panelling and all brand new - for the T S Eliot Prize Awards Ceremony.

Chair of this year’s Judges, poet Gillian Clarke, talked of the difficulty of choosing a winner in, 'an exceptional year.' She spoke at some length about the merits of each of the 8 short-listed Collecitons as the poets looked on, each clutching the cheques for £1000 which they all recieve.

Shortlisted poets:

back row, l to r: Sean O'Brien, David Harsent, John Burnside, Daljit Nagra

front, l to r: Leontia Flynn, Carol Ann Duffy, Esther Morgan

Having reached the end of the list Clarke paused, ‘Is that it? Do I have to say now who is the winner?’

And so she announced the popular choice of John Burnside, for Black Cat Bone which, she said was, 'a haunting book of great beauty, powered by love, childhood memory, human longing and loneliness... an outstanding book, one which the judges felt grew with every reading.'

He’s a popular choice because he’s one of the finest poets around. His work is challenging, but as Clarke said, ‘always lets the reader in.’

 

Burnside reads from Black Cat Bone

For the first time in its history the Prize attracted TV coverage. See video of Channel 4 News item, here.

Listen to Burnside reading five of his poems, here.

70 Poets Celebrate Dylan At 70

Happy Birthday, Bob Dylan, 70 today.

Who’d have thought it?

How did that suede-jacketed, smooth-skinned enigma walking down the snow-covered Greenwich Village street – West 4^th or Jones? –  on the cover of the Freewheelin’ album, Suze Rotolo hanging on his arm, get to reach 70?

Thinking about the album cover image and its affect on my teenage self led me to write my poem, 'Girl From The North.' And I’m excited to let you know that the poem appears in The Captain’s Tower, published today by Seren.

The Captain’s Tower is a birthday present to Dylan from the world of poetry. The book includes work by seventy poets who have met, seen or heard Dylan. The poems are about him, his work and how it has influenced their lives. There’s even a foreword by Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood.

Contributors range across continents and ages, from contemporaries and friends of Dylan such as Allen Ginsberg, Laurence Ferlinghetti and Michael McClure, to young writers such as Rachel Boast and Holly Hopkins. In between are familiar names from the poetry world – Paul Muldoon, Simon Armitage, Mark Ford, Jane Draycott, Linda France, Roger McGough, Glyn Maxwell, Robert Minhinnick, Matthew Sweeney, and many more including me!

I’ll be among the line-up of poets reading to launch the book at The Troubadour, London, on Monday 13 June, and at the Latitude Festival in July.

Hope to see some of you Dylan fans there!

You can buy the book, from Seren, or Inpress or from good, poetry-stocking bookshops.  

Yandle's 'Dogs' on YouTube

I'm not a doggy person and would generally avoid poems about dogs, but Paul Yandle's poem, 'Dogs,' is about more than the title lets on. It's a fine poem.

Plus, the kinetic typography he's used to make a video for YouTube seems a brilliant way for poets to put their work out there.

For those who love dogs and good poems, Yandle's work is shortly to be published in pamphlet, Ten Poems About Dogs, from Candlestick Press in July.

 

Top Ten Poets

The T S Eliot Prize for Poetry was awarded in January to Derek Walcott. The night before the winner was announced, the ten shortlisted poets read to an audience of 2000 at the Royal Festival Hall. It was an electric evening.

Who could ever choose from these ten?

You can revisit that evening and hear each poet read, as video's are now available on the Poetry Book Society's website. In the end Walcott won, but Simon Armitage was the Reading Group choice and Robin Robertson was chosen by the schools Shadowing Scheme.

Who would you have chosen? 

These ten poets give you a wonderful snapshot of contemporary poetry. You can listen to them all, here.

If you're pushed for time, why not try?  Simon Armitage

 

Calling All Women Poets

Do you live in the UK?

Have you published a pamphlet or a full-length collection of poetry?

If so, poets Jackie Wills and Ros Barber would like to hear from you as they are planning to compile a comprehensive list of contemporary woman poets in the UK to publish on a dedicated website.

They are particularly interested in less well-known writers who haven't been included in the big anthologies etc.

You can contact Jackie Wills at

wills . jackie @ googlemail . com

making sure you close the gaps in that email address when you use it!

For starters, send them your book/pamphlet title + publisher + date of publication +  a one paragraph biography.

Quote of The Week No 3

"Read, read and read. You can’t be writer unless you are a reader. So if you don’t like reading, forget it."

Simon Armitage

It comes about half way through this short video, all of which is worth watching. Though he's talking about writing poetry, much of what he says applies equally to writing ficton.

 

 

Sticking My Neck Out ...

Last TS Eliot shortlist meeting of the PRG tomorrow. We've been working our way through the 10 collections up for the Prize  - winner to be announced on Monday.

It's a strong shortlist. Of the ten, I’ve particularly enjoyed

Seamus Heaney’s Human Chain,

John Haynes’s You

Brian Turner’s Phantom Noise

Fiona Sampson’s Rough Music

Sam Willett’s New Light for the  Old Dark

But, I have to say, if you only read one book from this year’s shortlist make it Simon Armitage's Seeing Stars.  This is a book that stands out.

Why?

For Armitage's storytelling power, his humour, his sharp observations of life's absurdities, his ear for the poetry in everyday language, his attention to detail.

Some have questioned if the pieces in this collection are poems at all. The best of them refresh poetry - this is a collection of insightful and original writing that invites you to look at the world from a different angle. 

Want to make up your mind about the ten poets?

You can hear them all reading from their collections, here.

Read more about how Armitage came to write Seeing Stars, here.