A Murmuration (Paperback)

David Cooke

ISBN 10: 1909747114 / ISBN 13: 9781909747111

Editore: Two Rivers Press, Reading, 2015

Riguardo questo articolo

Paperback. In previous volumes David Cooke has explored his family origins in the West of Ireland and his upbringing in an Irish family in Berkshire. Grounded in experience, his poems have frequently explored questions of belief and identity in a wide-ranging historical context. In A Murmuration, his fourth collection, there are further poems evoking his Catholic adolescence: dancing at a teenage disco or listening to the blues in the ruins of a medieval abbey. There are poems too that look back to the early days of his marriage. Yet from the outset we find a new concern to go beyond appearances, to read landscapes, and explore the blurred frontiers where nature and civilisation merge. A late masterpiece by Bruegel or a wildlife documentary hint at how superficial the veneer of civilisation may be. A sequence of poems exploring the landscape and history of Malta is informed by both his own lost faith and his daughters conversion to Islam. Frequently praised for the clarity and musicality of his verse, Cooke is an accessible yet nonetheless ambitious poet who does not shy before intractable themes. Fourth collection by a poet who explores a wide range of themes with clarity and musicality. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Codice articolo 9781909747111

Dati bibliografici

• Titolo: A Murmuration (Paperback)
• Editore: Two Rivers Press, Reading
• Data di pubblicazione: 2015
• Lingua: Inglese
• ISBN 10: 1909747114
• ISBN 13: 9781909747111
• Rilegatura: Paperback
• Condizione: new

Descrizione articolo

Riassunto

In previous volumes David Cooke has explored his family origins in the West of Ireland and his upbringing in an Irish family in Berkshire. Grounded in experience, his poems have frequently explored questions of belief and identity in a wide-ranging historical context. In A Murmuration, his fourth collection, there are further poems evoking his Catholic adolescence: dancing at a teenage disco or listening to the blues in the ruins of a medieval abbey. There are poems too that look back to the early days of his marriage. Yet from the outset we find a new concern to go beyond appearances, to read landscapes, and explore the blurred frontiers where nature and civilisation merge. A late masterpiece by Bruegel or a wildlife documentary hint at how superficial the veneer of civilisation may be. A sequence of poems exploring the landscape and history of Malta is informed by both his own lost faith and his daughter's conversion to Islam. Frequently praised for the clarity and musicality of his verse, Cooke is an accessible yet nonetheless ambitious poet who does not shy before intractable themes.

Informazioni sull'autore

David Cooke was born in 1953 in Wokingham, although his family comes from the West of Ireland. In 1977, whilst he was an undergraduate at Nottingham University, he won a Gregory Award. His first collection, Brueghel's Dancers, was published in 1984, by Free Man's Press Editions. His poems and reviews have appeared or are forthcoming in numerous journals such as Agenda, The Bow Wow Shop, Critical Quarterly, Cyphers, The Interpreter's House, The Irish Press, The London Magazine, The North, Orbis, Other Poetry, Poetry Ireland Review, Poetry London, Poetry Salzburg Review, The Reader, The SHOp, Stand, Staple, and The Use of English. His retrospective collection, In the Distance, has just been published by Night Publishing. Work Horses, a collection of his more recent work, is published by Ward Wood Publishing. David Cooke is married with four grown-up children. For many years he was Head of Modern Languages at a large comprehensive school in Cleethorpes. In recent years he has earned his living as an internet bookseller.