Twenty Sonnets: New writing in a classic form

by Chris West

Here are twenty approachable but thoughtful 14-liners by writer Chris West, best known for his books on history and for crime fiction.

There aren't any murders here - well, maybe in one of the poems - but they share with crime fiction a deep concern for truth. What is it and where do you find it?

The collection is divided into two halves, one a collection of unrelated sonnets, the other a set of poems on the subject that has fascinated sonneteers since the first ones put pen to love.

27 pages, Paperback

Published January 3, 2021

About the author

I grew up in a country village north of London. As a boy I filled endless notebooks with stories - not all of them finished! As a young man I played in various (unsuccessful) bands, then worked in the City of London. I studied philosophy and economics as a 'mature' student (though I wasn't very mature). After leaving uni I went backpacking in China, and wrote a book about that adventure which came out in 1991. Since then, writing has (along with family) been at the heart of my life, though I've had other jobs, too, largely in Marketing and PR, working with small businesses. In 2008, I found an old stamp album in the attic of my parents' old house, and became fascinated by the contents and the way they seemed to mirror history. Each stamp was a tiny, rectangular time machine! In the end, I had to write a book along these lines: A History of Britain in 36 Postage Stamps was the result. I have now done the same for the USA - a fascinating journey into American history (and a great pleasure to collect the nation's stamps). I live in North Hertfordshire with my wife and daughter.

a.k.a Christopher West|6453491].