Todays book boost is also a book review of something totally out of my comfort zone POETRY. If there was ever a time to read or do something different then the days we have been facing is such a time. Having replied to a tweet about book launches cancelled several authors reached out to me and Christina was one of them. I took the plunge and asked for a copy of samples to use in my blog which to my surprise i found enjoyable. So luckily for me Christina was happy to send across a full copy of the book to read and immerse into, hence its a book boost/review.
BOOK BLURB
‘In the brave and moving poems of How To Carry Fire, Christina Thatcher writes powerfully of the things that love can survive […] these significant, memorable poems add to the store of the world’s treasures.’
— Jonathan Edwards
‘a dazzling array of poems both remarkable in their ingenuity, and raw, unforgettable honesty.’
— Helen Calcutt
‘By turns visceral and soaringly beautiful, these poems of brokenness, hope and fierce tenderness will find their way under your skin and lodge themselves inside your heart.’ — Janet Lees
‘Thatcher’s stunning second collection blazes a trail through the agonies and joys of human relationships in a voice that is terse, tense and urgent.’
— Robert Walton
How to Carry Fire was born from the ashes of family addiction. Beginning with the burning down of her childhood home, Thatcher explores how fire can both destroy and cleanse. Her work recognises embers everywhere: in farmhouses, heroin needles, poisonous salamanders.
Thatcher reveals how fire is internalised and disclosed through anxiety, addiction, passion and love. Underneath and among
the flames runs the American and Welsh landscapes – locations which, like fire itself, offer up experiences which mesmerise, burn and purify. This poignant second collection reminds us of how the most dangerous and volatile fires can forge us – even long after the flames have died down.
THE FOLLOWING TWO POEMS ARE THE SAMPLES
BOOK REVIEW
I sat a while wondering where to start when writing a review for a book of poems , how could i describe it, give it the words it deserved. So i thought why not break it down like i do a novel and describe it in the words that come to mind as i read through each poem. No fancy descriptions about stanzas and prose etc just my own words as they come to me. The poems are short snapshots of the life and musings of the author which adds depths to their richness. Yes they are short, sharp yet their words will resonate long after they are read. There is a darkness and despair around some of them yet the threads of hope string them together in an uplifting harmony. They deal with various issues drug abuse, arson, hate yet also love, strength and peace. A book of poems you will keep returning to in order to fully appreciate their beauty and discover nuances you missed in previous readings.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shortlisted for the Bare Fiction Debut Poetry Collection Competition in 2015 and a winner in the Terry Hetherington Award for Young Writers in 2016, Christina Thatcher’s poetry and short stories have featured in over 40 publications including The London Magazine, Planet Magazine, And Other Poems, Acumen and The Interpreter’s House. Her first collection, More than you were, was published by Parthian Books in 2017
Book Purchase Link from Publisher: https://www.parthianbooks.com/products/how-to-carry-fireTwitter and Instagram: @writetoempowerWebsite: https://christinathatcher.com/
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