Early Spring Reviews & Poetry Book Fair

Free Verse Poetry Book and Magazine Fair is managed by The Poetry Society

V. Press is very very pleased to be exhibiting at the 'Free Verse' Poetry Book Fair in London on Saturday, 22 February 2020, with a lunchtime reading featuring three V. Press poets.

The fair is a highlight on the poetry publishing calendar, featuring presses from across the U.K. and takes place at Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL from 11am to 5pm.

The V. Press reading takes place at 1.40pm and features V. Press poets Jinny Fisher, Natalie Linh Bolderston and Martin Zarrop.

'People, power, politics’: V. Press poets Jinny Fisher, Natalie Linh Bolderston and Martin Zarrop look at intergenerational issues, family relationships, survival, personality, science and politics in poems from their pamphlets The Escapologist, The Protection of Ghosts and Making Waves Albert Einstein: Science & Life.

 More information about what's in store for this year's fair can be found here, on Facebook here, and the Twitter / Instagram hashtag is #freeverse20.

If you can make the fair, please do come and say hello - we're v. v. much looking forward to meeting readers and writers!

Free Verse Poetry Book and Magazine Fair is managed by The Poetry Society

REVIEW NEWS

I, Ursula

"[...] Overall “I, Ursula” is a chilling, memorable exploration of the darker side of the muse. She is stalked, hunted, desired and formed in other’s image, a body on which to project desires. Rarely does she get her own voice but here she contemplates the power dynamics in relationships and how she is used to create art, often to her own detriment. Despite the projection of delicacy and fragility, she has to remain strong with a will to survive. Ruth Stacey has created a powerful collection."

Emma Lee, full review here.

For more information, a sample poem or to order a copy of I, Ursula, please click here.

Winter with Eva

This pamphlet is officially out on Valentine's Day next week, but has already received its first review.

"[...] There is a strong sense of narrative arc: two people meeting, falling in love, sharing their lives until cracks show ending with Sean’s dilemma. The poems balance celebration and disintegration. A satisfying read."
Emma Lee, full review here.

For more information, a sample poem or to order a copy of Winter with Eva, please click here.



Patience

'[...]“Patience” is a reminder of the value of connection between generations, legacies of objects and character passed from the contemporary to the future. The poems show sensitivity and an acute focus, exploring different aspects of an overall theme. Their gentleness acts as an invitation to the reader to engage with and interpret the poems. Their pace is measured which combines with a calm tone to explore grief, loss, legacy and intimacy. The title, “Patience” is apt. These are slow poems to enjoy at leisure.'
Emma Lee, full review here.

For more information, a sample poem or to order a copy of Patience, please click here.

About Leaving

"The theme of finding strength in a family and creating a safe place for children, even those who grow up and leave, to return to is as strong as the notion of leaving. The poems benefit from a programmer’s precision with language, but also offer texture and an openness of interpretation. They start in personal experience but open out into a universal concern: the effect on children of a parent’s absence and a desire to ensure home feels welcome. For all its apparent lightness, “About Leaving”, probes the intense experience of loss and recovery with honesty and concern."
Emma Lee, full review here.

For more information, a sample poem or to order a copy of  About Leaving, please click here.

The Protection of Ghosts

Natalie Linh Bolderston's The Protection of Ghosts had two mentions in the Poetry Wales '44 Poetry Books of 2019 as nominated by poets'.

"There is a sadness to the poems as they strive to reach into the minds and memories of others, but also a wiry strength.  An exceptional debut from a young poet."
Anna Lewis

"Many unforgettable and searing evocations of loss and the unceasing search for healing."
Jeffery Sugarman

If you didn't pick up a copy last year, you can still get one now. More information, a sample poem from The Protection of Ghosts and ordering here.

Making Waves Albert Einstein: Science & Life 

“[…]Zarrop imparts his knowledge with a lightness of touch, with an ear for the anecdote and keen sense for picking propitious moments in time.[…]

The science really comes to life where the poet-narrator-teacher employs metaphoric image or storytelling to great effect, as in ‘Equivalence.’ The image is of a man in a lift with the cable severed. Is he an astronaut, floating, or is he falling, in that precise moment? ‘as reaction/follows action,/performs a slow rotation/before terrestrial matter,/without a single thought,/gets in the way.’ The verbal shift from the scientific to the colloquial finale of ‘gets in the way,’ illustrates best the poet’s ability to bridge these two worlds in a way that is fascinating, and illuminates for once, (to me, at least, as one all too decidedly ‘non-scientific’), the poetry of, and in, equations, equivalencies and scientific paradox.”

Ken Evans, The Manchester Review, full review here.

For more information, a sample poem or to order a copy of Making Waves, please click here.

John Dust

"[...] The title character is a malleable ghost-like person others can project their feelings on. Just when someone thinks they have the measure of him, he shifts and surprises. He represents traditional folklore but can be found in Poundland. [...]"

Emma Lee, The Blue Nib, full review here.

For more information, a sample poem or to order a copy of John Dust, please click here.

The Aesthetics of Breath 

"[..]the careful building of these poems into a logical order, the vivid depiction of transient lives, the insight into social and historical events, was competent and challenging. The strength and beauty of some poems more than made up for lapses into the esoteric and, as reader, I felt gifted with the surprising perspective of man and father."

Pat Edwards, London Grip, full review here.

For more information, a sample poem or to order a copy of  The Aesthetics of Breath, please click here.



OTHER EVENTS

Friday, 28 February 2020 in Cheltenham, 7.30pm

Ruth Stacey will be reading from I, Ursula at The New Bohemians event, Cheltenham, hosted by Jennie Farley. Tickets £8.00 includes wine, soft drinks, nibbles. Contact su@deespaceworks.co.uk or pay on door. Venue: deepspaceworks art centre, 11 Hamilton Street, Charlton Kings, Cheltenham GL53 8HN. Free parking at St Edward’s Prep School, London Road (opposite Hamilton Street).


Wednesday, 25 March 2020 in Bishop's Castle, 7.30pm

Ruth Stacey will be guest poet at VERBATIM, hosted by Pat Edwards, at The Poetry Pharmacy, 36 High St, Bishops Castle, SY9 5BQ, entry £3 (inc drink & nibbles), with open mic slots available on the night.

Happy reading and hope to see you at Free Verse on 22 February!