Book Reviews and Poetry

Ilkeston poet Steven Michael Pape proudly holds up his debut collection

A hung parliament and a not so well-hung Jeremy Clarkson received poetic scorn in issue 35. Other topics included the unnatural marriage that is the Cleggeron and a speculative fiction offering from Alex Davis who helped coordinate the fantasy fiction all-dayer that is Alt Fiction.

Our book reviewers covered everything from Cloughy to the Caribbean. But a big thumbs up go to poets Steven Michael Pape and Rosie Garner for making it from the Write Lion forum to the world of print. 

If you've got a book that needs reviewing, an event that needs promoting or you fancy a natter on our literature podcast Write Lion, then give us a tinkle at books@leftlion.co.uk. If you'd like your poem featured in the magazine then get posting on the Write Lion forum and we'll get that literary carnivore Bookasaurus or our new Poetry Editor Aly Stoneman to have a look.

 

Interglacial Rosie Garner

On the corkscrew from Killisick, the bus
slides down roads like strips of thinnest skin
where house foundations only go so deep;
nubs of concrete set in mud and ancient coral reefs,
where once, between the ice sheets
meltwater smashed its way against the grain
dragged grit and silt along new valley floors,
made Arnold into marshland, hot and humid.

Hippos grazed the night in water meadows
behind Sainsbury's kept cool through underwater days
skimming over lily stems along the Daybrook.
Beneath the bus today you can hear
the chant of rock:
Red Marl, Mercia Mudstone,
Sherwood sand, pebble beds.

Still Alex Davis

Paralysed;
The night sky holds us
As the planets revolve,
Dancing imperceptibly

From our vantage
We see the myriad
Of twilight's tapestry,
The secrets of time
Opened before us

And we glow, seen
From unimagined places
Through enraptured eyes

We are ancient and still
Brilliant in our misery
Prisoners of the endless

(We watch, and we suffer)

Dave and Nick Cal

Nick meet Dave
you’ve so much in common
we can’t tell you apart
you’re the same guy, right?
or are we getting confused?
you’re both heavily into Zen Buddhism
and you wish the sky was made of ice cream
you’d like to teach the world to swing gently
especially on Fridays well wouldn’t we all
Dave secretly thinks nick is slightly chubby
Nick desires Dave’s wife
that’s just how it goes when
you’re the men in charge
perhaps Nick wishes he wasn’t a man
perhaps he’d like to sweep through the cabinet room
impersonating June Whitfield
Dave speaks to Nick as if he’s
talking to someone from Lithuania
Nick likes it when Dave does that
Nick climbs trees in the gardens at number 10
and cries for his mum at three in the morning
when he can’t sleep
Dave wants to invade somewhere
after all it is his turn to be tough
like Tony and the other bigger boys

Jeremy Clarkson, just f*ck off MulletProofPoet

It’s only four wheels
and a roof
a vehicle and not the truth
you can't caress an oil stain
or fall in love with a traffic lane,
or snog a sump or an MOT,
or snuggle with a parking fee

A glove compartment holds no cheer
you can’t laugh, with knackered gears
You’ll never see a Vauxhall smile
in a million, million, million miles
a car won’t give you what you need
a car will bring you to your knees

A car is money and petrol smell
combustion engine motor hell
Traffic jamming dents and prangs
insurance cons and joy ride gangs
a car might get you there, real quick

but a car cannot extend your dick
 

The Awakened Soul Steven Michael Pape Self-published £3.95

'A modern dystopian take on the fallibility of man’s lasting impact on the earth.'

Somewhere in-between the dark Romanticism of Coleridge and Blake and the brutal word of modern poetry stands The Awakened Soul. Another member of the LeftLion forum to self-publish, Steven Michael Pape’s poetry manages to strike the simple but resonating line. It draws the reader deep into a cryptic and clouded subconscious, while equally guiding the poetic imagination towards a path of delicate deliverance. Standing out from the collection is “Autumnal Dying”, a modern dystopian take on the fallibility of man’s lasting impact on the earth. Another highlight is “Dream of an Insomniac” which linguistically conveys with incredible clarity the surreal immobility of this sleepless condition. Pape has only recently begun to appear publicly, and if this collection is any marker, an awakening is all too fitting a word. Steven was interviewed on our Write Lion 4 podcast (Alistair Catteral)

The Rain Diaries Rosie Garner Salt, £8.99

'Contrasting environmental warnings and modern myth-making with acute observations of everyday life.'

From pre-historic Hippos keeping cool ‘through underwater days skimming over lily stems along the Daybrook’ to kids swimming at Basford crossing during a flash flood, this first collection of poetry by Rosie Garner is firmly rooted in Nottingham. Rosie explores how familiar places echo with lost meanings - ‘our estate was named after badgers, it must have been full of them once’ - contrasting environmental warnings and modern myth-making with acute observations of everyday life and family relationships. In ‘After the Tsunami’, she visualizes Asian tidal-wave devastation transferred to the flood-prone Meadows area, while poems from her writing residency in prisons reflect a tough humor and down-to-earth lyrical economy characteristic of her work.

The Rain Diaries provides an evocative commentary on the way we relate to our fellow ‘Tigguocabauc’ and how we place ourselves within the ever-changing landscape of our city. (AlyStoneman)
 
Even the Dogs Jon McGregor Bloomsbury, £12.99

We predicted McGregor would scoop the Booker before his fifth novel. Here's hoping he does it sooner.

Even the Dogs is Nottingham based Jon McGregor’s third novel. His first two were both longlisted for the Man Booker prize. Our advice? Get your hands on this now and celebrate London recognising one outside their centre.

This 208 paged novel begins with a week-old corpse in a festering flat. Narrated by an elusive 'we' that know the dead man, the story is told through observations and recalled fragments that reveal his story and 'theirs', suggesting a collective conscience and bringing the intense novel to climactic release. The language is both lyrical and impoverished, and evokes gritty, traumatised characters with economy and precision. Tender without being sentimental, and arresting but not shocking, McGregor offers a provocative view of the fringes of society, with a vantage point that's suspended midway between empathy and judgement. See online for an in depth analysis of his work. (Bianca Winter)

The Dawning Megan Taylor Weathervane Press, £7.99

'Depression, bullying, betrayal, malice, mental dislocation and a general air of creeping disaster suffuse (their lives).'

A crisp and snowy New Year’s Eve is the setting for Megan Taylor’s second novel, but for the Haywood family there’s very little to celebrate.  Depression, bullying, betrayal, malice, mental dislocation and a general air of creeping disaster suffuse the lives of Stella, Phillip and their children, Nicola, Zac and baby Mia.  Christmas must have been a blast.  Taylor tells her story through the internal lives of the family, with dialogue pared back to a bare minimum, and though the prose can get a trifle dense as it weaves through the thicket of her character’s richly pictured inner perceptions, she mostly pulls it off.  This is a pretty bleak tale, where any hope for the future is laced with an ominous foreboding of what will happen the morning after, but Taylor has crafted an involving picture of a family in a tailspin. Megan appears on our Write Lion 5 podcast. (Robin Lewis)

Brian and Peter A Right Pair: 21 years with Clough and Taylor Maurice Edwards
DB Publishing, £16.99

'Brian Clough is in danger of having as many books written about him as Hitler, such is the fascination he evokes.'

Brian Clough is in danger of having as many books written about him as Hitler, such is the fascination he evokes. Yet it would appear we have not yet reached a tipping point as each one offers a new variation on our favourite folklore. Edwards spent twenty-one years with the enigmatic duo as chief scout at all of their clubs, thereby enabling him the opportunity to settle one of the enduring footballing myths: Was Taylor the brains in spotting players or was it Clough’s unique management approach that brought success? Rather than rehashing old stories, Edwards offers new insights into our favourite outlaws and at long, long last, brings Taylor into the equation as an equal partner. Compulsory reading on the ‘greatest partnership’ England never had over 186 scintillating pages. (James Walker)

Caribbean Whispers Caroline Bell Foster IMH Publishing, £8.99

Arnold based author Caroline Bell Foster offers up a tale of romance and rape in the Caribbean.

The books starts by introducing the reader to Miriam and Jonas then quickly moves to Miriam's rape and rescue. Miriam's life changes forever when she becomes Thomas' daughter and takes the name Merissa. 

There was little depth to the characters and key events in Merissa's life are brushed over quickly, there is no attention given to the aftermath of the rape, it simply a means for Thomas to come across the girl and take her in. This is a romance though and exploring those things more fully would have created a much darker book.

Events move quickly and Caribbean Whispers is an extremely swift and easy read, the characters are largely likeable or not as intended and  I was rooting for Alex and Merissa by the end. Foster writes well, keeping the interest up and using occasional colloquial language and descriptions of food to create a sense of place.

Romance fans should enjoy it along with anyone looking for a light quick read. (Adele Harrison) 

We'll be giving out free books by local authors in a game of poetry bingo at 'Scribal Gathering' , our first spoken-word event to be held at the Nottingham Contemporary Cafe on Wednesday 4 August. Kick off: 7.00pm Entrance: Free with a smile.

 

 

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