Claytown (Salt, 2011) is my first collection of poetry. It explores the rapidly transforming china clay mining district of mid-Cornwall, its landscape, nature and geology.
“These are poems crafted to match the physical nature and power of Cornwall’s post-industrial landscape, rich with awareness of the fractured histories that define this region far off the tourist trail. Cornwall’s mineral, maritime and moorland realities are present here in a vital and present-day idiom, shot through with tough and compelling lyricism. An exciting and thoughtful debut” - Penelope Shuttle
“The poetry is vital and succulent and makes you revel on the lusciousness of words, the deliciously unexpected metaphor, his magical handling of mystery where we thought there was none. Nor is he too earnest for a snigger and a giggle, for there is laughter in there too, and deftly crafted ecstasy and euphoria. For poems replete with zawn and clitter, there’s nobody quite like him. Buy it; read it; and if you’re like me, you’ll love it” - Chris Stewart
Reviewing Claytown for Edinburgh Review, Jen Hadfield called the book “a kind of linguistic ‘works’ – experimental, active, productive, messy.”
Sarah Howe writes about The Catch, a poem from Claytown, here.
Claytown was published by Salt in 2011 and is now out of print. So you can view or download it here for free.
“These are poems crafted to match the physical nature and power of Cornwall’s post-industrial landscape, rich with awareness of the fractured histories that define this region far off the tourist trail. Cornwall’s mineral, maritime and moorland realities are present here in a vital and present-day idiom, shot through with tough and compelling lyricism. An exciting and thoughtful debut” - Penelope Shuttle
“The poetry is vital and succulent and makes you revel on the lusciousness of words, the deliciously unexpected metaphor, his magical handling of mystery where we thought there was none. Nor is he too earnest for a snigger and a giggle, for there is laughter in there too, and deftly crafted ecstasy and euphoria. For poems replete with zawn and clitter, there’s nobody quite like him. Buy it; read it; and if you’re like me, you’ll love it” - Chris Stewart
Reviewing Claytown for Edinburgh Review, Jen Hadfield called the book “a kind of linguistic ‘works’ – experimental, active, productive, messy.”
Sarah Howe writes about The Catch, a poem from Claytown, here.
Claytown was published by Salt in 2011 and is now out of print. So you can view or download it here for free.