Books in oak cases,
Country places.
Grandfather clocks tick,
The squire leans upon his stick.
A gun dog through the bracken scrambles,
After him the squire ambles.
—
Neon advertising signs,
Clubbers drunk on wine.
Half dressed girls sway on unsteady feet,
Trying to keep to the beat.
Fruit machines flash,
After knife wielding thugs the police dash.
—
In his study the squire sits,
from a glass of fine brandy he sips.
The dog his hand licks,
Elsewhere society falls to bits.
“Hello?”
I halted my walk through All Saints Churchyard and turned enquiringly in the direction of the voice. The speaker, having caught my attention continued thus,
“Why are these leaning? The stones I mean”, he said.
“I don’t know” I replied, continuing on my way home.
Perhaps my response to the above question was a little terse. However I was unsure as to why a total stranger should accost me with such a peculiar question and I had no wish to stand around debating matters about which I knew little, in a churchyard as evening fell. Afterwards however I began to ponder on this strange question. My pondering did not revolve around why gravestones lean (I assume that over time they tend to tilt). Rather my thoughts centred around the people residing under said stones. When one is dead surely one has no interest in whether the stone above your head is dead straight or leaning like a man who has just consumed 10 pints of strong beer? The sleepers in that quiet earth will, I assume rest with the same repose irrespective of whether the stone above their head tilts or stands straight as a die?
The incident brought to mind the closing lines of Brontae’s Wuthering Heights,
“I sought, and soon discovered, the three headstones on the slope next the moor: on middle one grey, and half buried in the heath; Edgar Linton’s only harmonized by the turf and moss creeping up its foot; Heathcliff’s still bare.
I lingered round them, under that benign sky: watched the moths fluttering among the heath and harebells, listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass, and wondered how any one could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth”.
I was thrilled to receive the following 2 5 star reviews of “The Girl Who Wasn’t There And Other Poems”:
“It is with great expectation that I started to read, “The Girl Who Wasn’t There And other Poems” by K. Morris. Even more enticing was the quote on the book’s
rear cover from Oscar Wilde, “We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars”.
Each poem represents a picture or better even, a snapshot from an old Polaroid of life’s other side which makes Wilde quote seem apropos as he knew firsthand
the changes life could take given his troubles in his later years. But aside from that as I read these poems another voice spoke to me, that of Edgar Allan
Poe. The wit of Oscar Wilde crossed with the macabre of Poe. This is dark poetry and one might find themselves a little too familiar with the situations
our subjects find themselves in.
We are given a hearty portion of love lost turned to its sleazy side; disillusionment with love and the mask used to portray this illusion as it feast
upon our soul in waking hours. But we’re reminded that we all turn to dust no matter what our accomplishments as we ask the ‘London Rain’ to wash away
this London hell we find ourselves in.
In ‘The Hypocrite’ we see a fine upstanding man, quick to condemn, above reproach, but for the grace of God it would be he instead of them.
‘The Spider and the Fly’ displays how each is doomed, both sides of life are found at fault.
We do see some light at the end of these gray skies as in the ‘Wit of a Gentlemen Suitor to His Beloved’ and the metaphor of the wind, the breeze to bring
about the hopes of our better angels.
I read ‘Venus in Firs’ and thought this might be pointing to Wilde himself and the notoriety that beseeched him.
‘The Fox and the Bear’ brought me back to the conditions of life and how we could find ourselves at the opposing end.
‘Handbags and Shoes’ brings us to the material gain we long for and the things we do for their gain.
Death is exposed in ‘The Dying Year’ and ‘Waking Early’ and in the closing line of ‘Saturday Morning’.
In the poems ‘Dolls’, ‘Drowning in Nightmare’ and ‘Digging’, I’m reminded more than ever of the effect Edgar Allan Poe may have had on this book of poetry.
In ‘Young Lady, Older Man’ we see the passing of any real feelings for both sides, the banality of it all. In this we return to the shame and pain, an
endless path as the bed post are witness to all that has gone wrong in love.
And for me the saving grace of it all, defined in the poem ‘Dog’.
This is a fine collection of poetry sure to capture the reader and find them at the mercy of these written words”. (For the review please visit http://www.amazon.com/review/R3J0CCGHV37EQ/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B0155KSKOC).
“A lovely collection of poems about living in the gutter of life. I find the poems touching and thought provoking, some made me laugh others are more serious
and sad. My favourites were the poems: The Whispering Wind, Masks and Innocence Lost”. (For the review please visit http://www.amazon.com/review/R1Q1N4ER7HNH5O/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B0155KSKOC).
Many thanks to both reviewers for taking the time to read and review “The Girl Who Wasn’t There And Other Poems”.
Kevin
I was pleased to receive the below 4 star review of my recently released collection of poetry, “The Girl Who Wasn’t There And Other Poems”:
“This is a great collection of poetry; some better than others. My favourites were “Two Voices” and “Dog” with “The Fox And The Bear”close behind them. I also really enjoyed “The Wolf And The Owl” and “Vampiress” a lot. There weren’t really any I didn’t like, but – as I already mentioned – I enjoyed some more than others”.
For the above review please visit http://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R3OANU8LFG54NI/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B0155KSKOC.
Thank you to the reviewer for taking the time to read and review “The Girl Who Wasn’t There And Other Poems”.
Kevin
Lucifir came for a potentate bold.
He said “you have had power and wealth untold,
Now you must render me your immortal soul”.
The potentate sighed,
And made reply,
“My soul it died,
you will find nothing inside.
It perished long ago,
And vanished like the summer snow.
Once I had ideals,
and yearned to build utopia in green fields.
I have waded in much blood,
And sacrificed the weak for the common good.
My soul you had long ago.
I take your hand,
Now let us go”.
I hear the minotaur roar,
And see the vampire soar.
Lost in the labyrinth of my mind,
Can I a way out find,
Via Ariadne’s thread,
Or must I remain in the land of the dead?
A place where the shadows forever fall,
And no birds call.
I was pleased to receive the following 4 star review for “The Girl Who Wasn’t There And Other Poems”:
“Short bitter-sweet poems about love lost and aspirations unfulfilled”. For the review please visit (http://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R21SAKB5Z2UU23/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B0155KSKOC). Thank you to Chris Graham for taking the time to read and review “The Girl Who Wasn’t There”.
Many thanks to Sally for featuring my new book, “The Girl Who Wasn’t There And Other Poems” on her blog. For Sally’s post please visit the following link, https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2015/09/11/new-book-fanfare-the-girl-who-wasnt-there-poetry-collection-by-k-morris/.
Kevin
I have updated the ‘Reviews of my books’ page (http://newauthoronline.com/reviews-of-my-books/) so as to include a number of recent reviews in respect of ‘Dalliance’.
On checking my reviews today I was delighted to see that “Dalliance; A Collection Of Poetry And Prose” has received the following 5 star review,
“I loved the sheer variety of the pieces in this book – and the lyrical nature of the writing. Most beautiful. Two, in particular, stood out for me: ‘Dark Angel’ and ‘The Great Cycle’. Both evoked the connection we have with the world – though in very different ways, one being a physical bond with the natural world, the other a more inanimate ‘friend’! I thoroughly recommend this exquisite little collection”.
(For the review please visit http://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R3PJBPNU2ESSIH/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00QQVJC7E).
Many thanks to the reviewer for taking the time to read and review “Dalliance”.
Kevin
K Morris - Poet 