This title is printed to order. This book may have been self-published. If so, we cannot guarantee the quality of the content. In the main most books will have gone through the editing process however some may not. We therefore suggest that you be aware of this before ordering this book. If in doubt check either the author or publisher’s details as we are unable to accept any returns unless they are faulty. Please contact us if you have any questions.
In both subject matter and style, Angelika Quirk's new poetry book ranges far and wide-from her childhood experiences in war-torn Hamburg playing in the rubble of hollow houses, to the delights and perils of love, to the wit of the latest offerings in imagery, as in "Body Parts Galore" -souls on sale/ some lighter than air/ some thinner than sin.
We follow the lead of her lyrical voice through a dreamscape that includes Valkyries, an escape artist, a bearded monk, a Derwish dancer, a camel spitting into the sinking sun and a kleptomaniac squinting at the hologram of her elusive mind.
She writes about the inequalities of the human condition: the war in Ukraine "Lacrimosa-Weeping", children separated from families at the Mexican border, and refugees drowning in the Mediterranean Sea-A child's body washes ashore./ His father clutching him./ His eyes turning east toward Mecca. The poet doesn't just brush against the surface of things, but delves into the complexity beneath, If I could give up the fear of falling, / of drowning, I could dive down/ into your murky depth....
Looming over this collection is a menacing past, both personal and historical: the poet surviving war and famine, hiding in bomb-shelters, yet as a teenager dancing in operas and ballets, she keeps her balance with style and verve. In her poem "They Are Dancing" her final words:
"They touch the sun, then dance on ashes, practicing the graceful ways of angels. They dance on shards of a broken world. They dance."
