Who knows? Eyewear has some ideas, but wants to hear from you, its mostly silent readers: what were your favourite poetry collections of 2012? Most intriguing answer will win some goodies from Eyewear Publishing. So do post your comments.
THAT HANDSOME MAN A PERSONAL BRIEF REVIEW BY TODD SWIFT I could lie and claim Larkin, Yeats , or Dylan Thomas most excited me as a young poet, or even Pound or FT Prince - but the truth be told, it was Thom Gunn I first and most loved when I was young. Precisely, I fell in love with his first two collections, written under a formalist, Elizabethan ( Fulke Greville mainly), Yvor Winters triad of influences - uniquely fused with an interest in homerotica, pop culture ( Brando, Elvis , motorcycles). His best poem 'On The Move' is oddly presented here without the quote that began it usually - Man, you gotta go - which I loved. Gunn was - and remains - so thrilling, to me at least, because so odd. His elegance, poise, and intelligence is all about display, about surface - but the surface of a panther, who ripples with strength beneath the skin. With Gunn, you dressed to have sex. Or so I thought. Because I was queer (I maintain the right to lay claim to that
Comments
One of the ambitious and inventive collections I've read this year.
Rhian Edwards - Clueless Dogs
Edwards writes with so much wit and charm that it's not hard to love this debut.
I don't like using superlatives when it comes to listing poets & collections etc but I have read some outstanding ones this year & i think any of these should amongst a list.
Ross Sutherland's 'emergency window' PITM
sam riviere's 'austerities' FABER
Sally Jenkinson's 'sweat borne secrets' BURNING EYE
Luke Kennard's 'planet shaped horse' NINE ARCHES
Rhyming Thunder Anothology of Alternative Poets - BURNING EYE
although when writing that list I realised how many collections I havn't got round to getting yet this year!! anyway this is a list of collections that I have left an impression in my memory this year
- the pamphlet by Kim Moore "We Could Speak Like Wolves"
- Karen Dennison's collection "Counting Rain" which the best moon landing poem I've ever read!
- Lindsey Holland's "Particle Soup" which is super clever the way she's sectioned, titled and contented it - it tickles my scientific inclinations
Already I see much to argue against in http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/nov/30/christmas-gifts-2012-best-poetry-books.
Louise