I've just finished reading Take Me With You, Polly Clark's second poetry collection, which I bought at a reading I attended earlier this year. She is one of my favourite living poets and I really enjoyed this book. She writes a lot (though by no means exclusively) about nature and the relationships between humans and the natural world, from observations of nature to thoughts on recycling. This is an excerpt from Fairytale:
A kingfisher sparks
and flickers ahead of me
and of course, I follow it
though it leads me only
to where the ducks in formation
know the secret of what comes next.
There is always genuine insight in Polly Clark's poetry and she uses language beautifully. I'll leave you (specially all the bunny bloggers out there!) with an excerpt from Nibbling:
...............................................She's
a crazed dictator, disappearing
whole families of scorching pinks.
The pin faces of forget me nots
giggle as she opens wide.
i love the "p" 's and "pin" 's...'cause the effect. That is mastery of language...
ReplyDeleteI agree, beautifully used language. I will get the book as wekk. Thanks for letting us know. Ciao. A.
ReplyDeleteLovely stuff from somebody who really loves and understands nature Juliet.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing Polly's poetry -- I had not heard of her until now.
ReplyDelete:)
xo
What wonderful poems - I too never heard of her but will be looking for that book.
ReplyDeleteBlood Axe Books continues to do a fabulous job, bringing wonderful poets like Polly Clark to a wide audience. They are possibly the most successful publishers of poetry in the world at the moment and this book is a fabulous example of why.
ReplyDeleteForget-me-nots ... I planted one once! Now I pull them like weeds every spring! And certainly remember the one I planted it for!
ReplyDeleteThanks everyone.
ReplyDeletePaul - yes you are so right, Bloodaxe do a great job
Rabbits Guy - yes they do spread don't they!
Thanks for sharing this
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