Whistles Book Club: Poetry Titles To Start Reading
If you’ve already exhausted the titles on your bookshelf, why not try something new? We’ve got a list of must-read poetry books that are great for dipping in and out of.
Somebody Give This Heart a Pen by Sophia Thakur
From acclaimed performance poet Sophia Thakur comes a powerful first collection of poems exploring issues of identity, difference, faith, relationships, fear, loss and joy. Intricate, evocative and dazzling – these are poems that explore the experiences that connect people; encouraging readers to look within and explore the tendencies of the heart.
Poems to Fix a F**ked Up World
Oscar Wilde wrote some of his best poetry when he was in prison for ‘the love that dare not speak its name’. Nelson Mandela held fast to his ‘unconquerable soul’ on Robben Island with the help of the words a poet wrote about his battle with tuberculosis a century before. So maybe it’s not inconceivable that the words in this little book could help you put things in perspective. Taking as its starting point the classic ‘wheel of balance’ life-coach model, this beautifully packaged collection of extracts and short poems gathers wisdom – both old and new – is the perfect book to comfort you through confusing and challenging times.
Poems for a World Gone to Sh*t
A beautiful little book of short, simple, classic and contemporary poems to dip into, to make life feel better. From Shakespeare and Shelley to Lemn Sissay and Kate Tempest, poets have always been the best at showing us we’re not alone, however bad things might seem. Rediscover old favourites and find some new treasures – you might be surprised just how much poetry can help.
Where the Road Runs Out by Gaia Holmes
Gaia Holmes’ third collection of poetry transports us to the edge of things: to remote, treeless islands, to dark, unfathomable mines, to the gaping maw of grief. With frailty and ferocity, these poems map out the strange absences left in our lives when a rupture occurs – like the sudden appearance of a sinkhole – threatening to pull everything else down with it. Where the Road Runs Out is a powerful and intimate portrait of loss, isolation, and ultimately healing. Above all, it is a paean to the landscape and the myths, magic and mysteries that lie just beneath the surface.
