Dive into the vibrant world of modern poetry with a look at recent highlights including works addressing transgender life, wartime realities, AI collaboration, poetic diversity, and dreamlike sequences.
Recent Poetry Highlights
Them! by Harry Josephine Giles (Picador, £10.99)
Harry Josephine Giles’s “Them!” addresses transgender life in modern Britain. The collection juxtaposes fierce cries of protest against prejudice and long waiting times for gender identity clinic appointments with wit and strange beauty. The poems vary in form from prose poetry and erasures to visual poems and minimalist nature verses, reflecting diverse experiences within the trans community.
Still City by Oksana Maksymchuk (Carcanet, £12.99)
Oksana Maksymchuk’s “Still City” serves as a poetic diary of the Ukrainian invasion. Written in English, the collection captures wartime’s stark realities and resilience. Poems depict everything from dismembered bodies to babies lulled to sleep by explosions, emphasizing the ongoing conflict without a conclusive end.
Conflicted Copy by Sam Riviere (Faber, £12.99)
Sam Riviere collaborates with the AI network GPT-2 in “Conflicted Copy,” exploring the intersection of poetry and machine learning. The poems exhibit a blend of human creativity and algorithmic influence, questioning the future of poetry in the digital age.
The Collected Poems by Roger McGough (Viking, £25)
Roger McGough’s anthology spans from the 1960s to contemporary times, showcasing a variety of styles and themes. The collection includes playful pandemic poems, elegies, visual poems, and satirical pieces, encapsulating McGough’s extensive career and diverse poetic contributions.
Sleepers Awake by Oli Hazzard (Carcanet, £12.99)
Oli Hazzard’s “Sleepers Awake” draws from diverse inspirations, blending dreamlike sequences with everyday life. The poems engage with various activities and reflections, creating a tapestry of thoughts that blur the lines between conscious and subconscious experiences.
These collections offer rich, varied explorations of contemporary life and human experience through poetry.
