At first sight, this review might
seem a contradiction in terms. If Rogue
Strands tends to concentrate on poetry from beyond the big publishers, why
feature Simon Armitage, who’s among the most renowned contemporary poets in the
U.K.?
Well, the reason is easily
clarified. Today’s focus is not on his recent publication from Faber, but on New Cemetery, his collection from
propolis books. They are an imprint that’s been created under the auspices of
The Book Hive, one of the best independent bookshops in the country and well
worth a visit if you’re ever in the Norwich area.
New
Cemetery is unusual in several ways. First off, there’s the
physical aspect. At a distance, from the other side of a room, it might
resemble a desktop diary, but closer inspection shows it’s a gorgeous artefact
with extremely high production values. Some people might be sniffy about paying
almost thirteen pounds for nineteen pages of actual verse, but you’re getting
far more than that for your money. The quality of the paper is palpable and the
typesetting impeccable, while the artwork is limpid and complements the verse
with a stark, naïf quality.
All of the above leads us on to the
verse itself, which is also unusual. It might initially seem a break with Armitage’s
trajectory: a book-length sequence that’s written in three-line stanzas without
a clear narrative drive. Collage effects are achieved by juxtaposing physical
descriptions with ruminations on life and writing, all interwoven with
illustrations. Nevertheless, a detailed reading of New Cemetery yields
unexpected connections with Armitage’s previous work, all alongside indications
of a new way forward for him.
Whether you like it or not,
Armitage’s first full collection, Zoom!, was a landmark in late 20th-century
U.K. poetry. What’s also clear is that his following books struggled to match
its incredible energy, intimate and social connections with its surroundings,
and intoxicating immediacy. Instead, book by book, Armitage’s verse gradually
seemed to step back somewhat from everyday life so as to understand it better,
taking a route that led away from Zoom!
New Cemetery, meanwhile, finds the
poet reconnecting with the physical and aesthetic territory of his first
collection, but approaching it from a different direction.
New
Cemetery homes in on the West Yorkshire countryside via a shed
where the writer works. Nearby, the local council have begun peeling back turf
to turn a former cow-field into the new cemetery of the title. This book is
littered with local and personal landmarks, as the poet blends physical observations
with layered meditations.
And what about the fizzing syntax of
Zoom!? Or the conscious stretching and
straining for effect of Armitage’s later collections? In New Cemetery, both are replaced by short. sparse, pared-back lines that reflect the poet’s re-found ease with his own use of language, as in the
following extract:
“but no amount
of
deranged swinging
can
begin to unlock
the dead from the living.
The
winds of the world
blast
and rattle
that private wood,
and
the wishbone rides
in
the tuning fork.
New Cemetery might first appear an
insignificant volume in the context of Simon Armitage’s work. Nevertheless, its
importance shouldn’t be underestimated. By recasting old territory in the light
of maturity, the poet has successfully pushed back his own boundaries and found
a direction to be explored in future volumes. As such, this little book isn’t
just a curiosity; it’s pivotal to our understanding of Armitage’s development.
