John Hollander

I was saddened to read this morning of John Hollander's death (here's a link to an obituary in the New York Times).

As I've mentioned previously on Rogue Strands, Hollander's Rhyme's Reason played a key role in my poetic development as a teenager, all thanks to a recommendation from Mr Hoyes, my English teacher at the time! His own verse might be highly esoteric at times, but this is a very manageable and accessible little manual of versification. It's ideal for new poets who want to get to grips with metrics and I still recommend it to this day.

Self-consciously self-conscious

In our recent reviews of Luke Samuel Yates' pamphlet, The pair of scissors that could cut anything, over at Sphinx (see here), both Richie McCaffery and myself coincided in the "self-conscious" nature of Yates' poetry. What's more, I even argued that his verse seems "self-consciously self-conscious".

In other words, Yates is adopting a very specific poetic posture. I'm sure his work is going to play a significant role in the U.K. poetry scene over the coming years, and I'll be intrigued to follow its development.

Degna Stone's Record and Play

My review of Degna Stone's Record and Play is now up over at Sphinx. You can read it here, alongside complementing and contrasting views from Helena Nelson and Ross Kightly. Like always in such cases, reading their pieces makes me reassess my own opinions!

John Field at Aldeburgh

I read yesterday that John Field will be appearing at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival (see here). This is excellent news, as he's been selected as the festival's Guest Blogger on the back of his terrific work over at Poor Rude Lines during the past year. Field's emergence underlines that poetry blogging can have a serious backbone and play a key role in the U.K. poetry world.

Field will be discussing the work of a number of pamphleteers who'll be reading at the festival, and I was delighted to notice that Richie McCaffery, whose chapbook I so enjoyed last year, is among them. All in all, Aldeburgh can boast a superb line-up once more!

Different heats

Having fled 42-degree heat in Extremadura, I've encountered sweltering Sussex. Different heats, different ways of dealing with them (few two-hour siestas are to be had in Blighty!) and different ways of expressing them.

For example, Larkin's "Long lion days" could only be about a British heat wave: summer days don't start with a "white haze" over in Spain. The light in both countries varies dramatically in tone, although you could argue the "hammer of heat" has a similar effect!

Matt Merritt's new collection

Matt Merritt's new collection, The Elephant Tests, is now out from Nine Arches Press. I'm really looking to getting hold of a copy and will report back on Rogue Strands in due course. In the meantime, here's a link to one of the poems from the book on Ink, Sweat and Tears. It certainly whets my appetite!

Sold out!

Inventing Truth, my first HappenStance pamphlet, has now officially sold out. While I'm delighted at this success, I also feel the melancholy of a parent when their child flies the nest!

In any case, I do have a few copies left in my possession, and I'ĺl be selling them at future readings to be announced in due course. What's more, Tasting Notes is still available via the HappenStance website or with bottles of wine included from Bat and Bottle. Just follow the links to the right of this post