We were delighted to hear that Poetry Book Society members Nancy Gaffield and Hugh Dunkerley have had their works Meridian and Kin published earlier this year. It’s wonderful to find out that a member has published their own collection, and we’re excited to introduce you to their latest published works:
Meridian by Nancy Gaffield is a long form poem which follows the 270-mile journey North along the Greenwich Meridian Trail from Peacehaven to Sand le Mere, which she walked between 2015 and 2017. However, Meridian is not simply an extended postcard from a previous trip. It is a carefully formed series of reflections, a tale of walking and time.
‘Nancy Gaffield’s bravely resourceful long poem takes us ‘true North’ with her along the variegated trails marking England’s portion of the Meridian. Her lithe, varied poetic lines embody the present and the historic, the minute and the gargantuan, the simple and complex, the everyday and the artistic, the expected and the surprising—the physical, mental, and emotional experience of her explorations. Combining meditations, reactions, observations, memories with striking ideas, inspired descriptions, literary recalls, the poem captures everything from dirt to ecology to philosophy. Readers will prize this important, inspiring book: the Line, lines, a life brilliantly fused.’
—Lou Rowan
Kin by Hugh Dunkerley seamlessly follows his last collection Hare. Like Hare, it includes a focus on the natural world, creating a kinship between the reader and nature. However, throughout the entire collection is the theme of fatherhood. Focused observation allows a vivid picture of the experiences of being a father, and Dunkerley’s honesty make them deeply affecting.
‘Kin probes fatherhood, masculinity, and mental health from an array of insightful angles. It poses urgent questions around the ethical complexities of nurturing whilst celebrating, too, the unexpected renewals it can bring. These truthful poems hit home because their speakers engage fully with what it means to be vulnerable, to be anxious, to be one human among many.’
—John McCullough
If you are a Poetry Book Society member with a recent or upcoming published work, we invite your publisher to get in touch with us, and of course submit to our quarterly bulletin. You could be the next member’s release!