An alluring first collection of 51 poems about life in Wales and beyond in the 21st century, about the pain and joy of friendships, about the pleasures and tensions of being at home and in exile, written with intensity and enlightened wit.

Casgliad cyntaf hudolus o 51 o gerddi am fywyd yng Nghymru a thu hwnt yn yr 21ain ganrif, am boen a llawenydd cyfeillgarwch, am fwynderau a thensiynau cartref ac alltudiaeth, wedi'u llunio gyda dwyster a ffraethineb deallus.

This is a debut collection of poems bursting with vitality. Each poem takes us into a different world, as they twist and turn with rich language and form, and each works as a whole, unique piece every time.

The atmosphere of every poem shines with a quickness and liveliness of its own, from the upbeat feel of ‘Joyrider’ – ‘come, hot-wired from the city, down a one-car lane, over the keystone bridge that cannot take the headlong rush’ . . . to the more sad, slow ‘Or Nothing (after Williams Carlos Williams)’ – ‘Or nothing, a pious wish to whiteness gone over, a cluster, flower by flower, white desire, empty, a single stem.’

Katherine Gray captures the reader’s senses and emotions with sparkling skill and wit throughout. She has been shortlisted for the 2004 T.S. Eliot Prize.

Clare Maynard

It is possible to use this review for promotional purposes, but the following acknowledgement should be included: A review from www.gwales.com, with the permission of the Welsh Books Council.

Gellir defnyddio’r adolygiad hwn at bwrpas hybu, ond gofynnir i chi gynnwys y gydnabyddiaeth ganlynol: Adolygiad oddi ar www.gwales.com, trwy ganiatad Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru