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A collection of love poems by various authors: Gillian Clarke, Grahame Davies, Christine Evans, Gwyneth Glyn, Rex Harley, Christine Kinsey, Julie Rainsbury, Susan Richardson, Owen Sheers a Jenny Sullivan. -- Welsh Books Council

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9781843238157

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With a collection such as this, with the words love and longing in the title, there is a wide range of possibilities and subject matter, and scope for a variety of poets from Wales to indulge in their favourite emotions and pastimes, from brief encounters to dreams of Bardsey island, and from racing greyhounds to red tin trays holding bowls of creamy custard. And this is what the ten poets do, with varying degrees of linguistic skill and, consequently, varying degrees of success. Wings by Gillian Clarke epitomises the success of concise imaginative thought brought to the simplest of acts: watching the sleeping form, while Rex Harleys five sections explore a range of childhood memories, often in an amusing style. The past is longed for, but unattainable. Love of time, of place, of persons, of activity -- all are explored here. And yet I suspect that most teenage readers would expect the poems to be about physical love. That is what fills many minds searching for explanations and answers to this most basic -- and often puzzling -- aspect of relationships. The great love poems of the past after all are often about unrequited love or mistakes in love. The ones which remain in our memory are those which provided new images, permeated our consciousness and our understanding of what it means to love, and to be in love. In Owen Sheers Song, the steadfastness of the magpie and its mate caught in the Larsen trap brings a new freshness to the waiting game. Heart to Heart by Julie Rainsbury presents every possible hearty idiom in a delightful tongue-in-cheek narrative involving Queen and Knave. Yet the message, and the writers sadness remain clear as she shares one of loves inevitable possibilities -- being let down by the loved one. The anthology provides, as do all collections of both poetry and prose, an opportunity to enjoy familiar writers and to discover new ones, to re-read personal favourites time and time again, and to skip over, with hardly a second glance, subjects and styles that dont appeal or move. We all need choice, and a chance for selection -- to redefine our notions of love and to respond to our emotions of longing, both present and past; Poems of Love and Longing gives us that choice and that chance. Chris Stephens It is possible to use this review for promotional purposes, but the following acknowledgment should be included: A review from www.gwales.com, with the permission of the Welsh Books Council. Gellir defnyddior adolygiad hwn at bwrpas hybu, ond gofynnir i chi gynnwys y gydnabyddiaeth ganlynol: Adolygiad oddi ar www.gwales.com, trwy ganiatd Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru. -- Welsh Books Council

With a collection such as this, with the words love and longing in the title, there is a wide range of possibilities and subject matter, and scope for a variety of poets from Wales to indulge in their favourite emotions and pastimes, from brief encounters to dreams of Bardsey island, and from racing greyhounds to red tin trays holding bowls of creamy custard. And this is what the ten poets do, with varying degrees of linguistic skill and, consequently, varying degrees of success. Wings by Gillian Clarke epitomises the success of concise imaginative thought brought to the simplest of acts: watching the sleeping form, while Rex Harleys five sections explore a range of childhood memories, often in an amusing style. The past is longed for, but unattainable. Love of time, of place, of persons, of activity all are explored here. And yet I suspect that most teenage readers would expect the poems to be about physical love. That is what fills many minds searching for explanations and answers to this most basic and often puzzling aspect of relationships. The great love poems of the past after all are often about unrequited love or mistakes in love. The ones which remain in our memory are those which provided new images, permeated our consciousness and our understanding of what it means to love, and to be in love. In Owen Sheers Song, the steadfastness of the magpie and its mate caught in the Larsen trap brings a new freshness to the waiting game. Heart to Heart by Julie Rainsbury presents every possible hearty idiom in a delightful tongue-in-cheek narrative involving Queen and Knave. Yet the message, and the writers sadness remain clear as she shares one of loves inevitable possibilities being let down by the loved one. The anthology provides, as do all collections of both poetry and prose, an opportunity to enjoy familiar writers and to discover new ones, to re-read personal favourites time and time again, and to skip over, with hardly a second glance, subjects and styles that dont appeal or move. We all need choice, and a chance for selection to redefine our notions of love and to respond to our emotions of longing, both present and past; Poems of Love and Longing gives us that choice and that chance. Chris Stephens It is possible to use this review for promotional purposes, but the following acknowledgment should be included: A review from www.gwales.com, with the permission of the Welsh Books Council. Gellir defnyddior adolygiad hwn at bwrpas hybu, ond gofynnir i chi gynnwys y gydnabyddiaeth ganlynol: Adolygiad oddi ar www.gwales.com, trwy ganiatd Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru. -- Welsh Books Council

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