The Air Year
Poetry has always sustained me through times of crisis and sorrow, something I learned at a very early age when I was given The Golden Treasury of Poetry, edited Louis Untermeyer, illustrated by Joan Anglund Walsh (sadly out of print). It was a large and rich seam of poems that suited every mood I could possibly have, from the age of eight, to way past 80, I imagine.
Love is as Strong as Death is a collection of poems chosen by Paul Kelly—and what a fabulously weighty book it is. With a wonderful plainly spoken introduction by Kelly which leads you into the rich world of the true poetry lover. He’s included lots of tried and true poetry, which seems to come alive in this context—erotic poetry, pious poetry, and poems by a very diverse range of poets. I’m not well read enough to be surprised by the number of poets I don’t know, but I’m happy there are so many old friends included.
The Air Year by Carol Bird is a slim volume of poetry, in verse and prose, that leads you through the first year in a relationship, (air being the precursor of paper, the traditional gift for the first anniversary). I read this book from cover to cover—it’s not a linear narrative, but can be read that way. Carol Bird’s poetry is aerial, light and webby. There’s darkness there, and extraordinary imagery, (a poem of finding a torpedo in a forest made me laugh out loud, and a poem of doing Christmas craft in rehab caused me to pause). It’s mysterious, but instantly recognisable—even though her experiences may not be yours, you’ll get the jolt of human recognition, and need to keep reading. This book won the Costa Poetry Award in 2020.
Martin Amis’ latest book Inside Story is confounding; a biography that has the lead males as named and recognisable characters—his father Kingsley, his friends Saul Bellow and Christopher Hitchens, and the poet Philip Larkin, (above whose head a large question mark trembles). The female protagonists (his wives, his old girlfriends) have fictional names, and the author claims the most notorious of these, Phoebe, is a blend of several real people (for her sake, I hope so). Once you realise Amis is playing with you, this book is absolutely absorbing and fabulous. Experience (2000), Martin Amis’ biography is probably my favourite autobiography of all time, and I read Inside Story as a sequel, of sorts. It stands by itself, but I highly recommend both of them.