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Rough Spun to Close Weave
These words worked the long day Harold died,
When Norman French swept up the slope of Senlac hill
And English grammar broke and bled into the dusk.
Firmly rooted in the past, these poems branch out from Old English and the traditional ballad to the language of televised archeology and the travel guide, twisting from folksong to fairy tale to café gossip. In a tangled conversation between past and present, the voices of Vikings, poets, lovers, talking skulls, shipwrecked sailors, house painters, disgruntled middle managers, migrants and others jostle each other on their intricate journey from Rough Spun to Close Weave.
Available from:
http://www.ginninderrapress.com.au/po...
When Norman French swept up the slope of Senlac hill
And English grammar broke and bled into the dusk.
Firmly rooted in the past, these poems branch out from Old English and the traditional ballad to the language of televised archeology and the travel guide, twisting from folksong to fairy tale to café gossip. In a tangled conversation between past and present, the voices of Vikings, poets, lovers, talking skulls, shipwrecked sailors, house painters, disgruntled middle managers, migrants and others jostle each other on their intricate journey from Rough Spun to Close Weave.
Available from:
http://www.ginninderrapress.com.au/po...
- GenresPoetry
80 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2012
1 person is currently reading
2 people want to read
About the author
Liam Guilar
13 books62 followersBorn Coventry, England, studied Medieval History and Literature first at Birmingham University (UK) then at the University of Queensland (Australia). He has a PhD from Deakin University.
Infected with a bad attack of the Rider Haggards from an early age and carrying his tatty copy of Does the Wet Suit You he spent decades lugging a kayak to remote places in search of wild rivers.
He has had seven collections of poems published: The Poet's Confession, I'll Howl Before You Bury Me, Lady Godiva and Me, Rough Spun to Close Weave and Anhaga
His most recent books are A Presentment of Englishry, A Man of Heart and The Fabled Third published by Shearsman in the UK. For full details visit his website at http://www.Liamguilar.com
Infected with a bad attack of the Rider Haggards from an early age and carrying his tatty copy of Does the Wet Suit You he spent decades lugging a kayak to remote places in search of wild rivers.
He has had seven collections of poems published: The Poet's Confession, I'll Howl Before You Bury Me, Lady Godiva and Me, Rough Spun to Close Weave and Anhaga
His most recent books are A Presentment of Englishry, A Man of Heart and The Fabled Third published by Shearsman in the UK. For full details visit his website at http://www.Liamguilar.com
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 10, 2019
If you look at my ratings for all the books I've read they're usually three stars (unless it would be fatuous to do so) and I don't give reviews - I don't want to be an unpaid advertiser for goodreads ...
I feel I should make an exception with this book though ...
I don't pretend to be a competent critic especially of poetry, so I'll keep the review to the effect the book had upon me and for ease of writing (and so as not to labour the reader) I'll stick to one poem.
The poem that sticks in my memory, that resonated with my personal experience of life and literature was 'The Decorator Admires His Predecessor's Work'.
With regard to literature it invoked Richard Wilbur's 'Junk' ... I suppose I'm supposed to lift and drop a few quotes to support my argument but read the poem ... https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem... ... and compare the two: you'll get it. The book that the poem brings to mind is Ayn Rand's 'The Fountainhead' which I appreciate is a 'no-no' for those who subordinate themselves to fashion. So, now we've sloughed that crowd, I can go on to explain that the hero of the book is presented with some work ... he's bowled over to be given the opportunity to do it, and when asked for a quote, he says something like ... 'how much? I should be paying you'. This leads on to my personal experience (and that of my father's). I don't want to go into detail - only priests enjoy confessionals - but I've had projects that I would've paid to do ... but it's worse than that ... like the decorator in the poem, some of them have ended up being corrupted by the tight fisted who aren't prepared to pay for a job done properly and demand the mutual degradation of 'Quick, Slick and outta here."
I feel I should make an exception with this book though ...
I don't pretend to be a competent critic especially of poetry, so I'll keep the review to the effect the book had upon me and for ease of writing (and so as not to labour the reader) I'll stick to one poem.
The poem that sticks in my memory, that resonated with my personal experience of life and literature was 'The Decorator Admires His Predecessor's Work'.
With regard to literature it invoked Richard Wilbur's 'Junk' ... I suppose I'm supposed to lift and drop a few quotes to support my argument but read the poem ... https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem... ... and compare the two: you'll get it. The book that the poem brings to mind is Ayn Rand's 'The Fountainhead' which I appreciate is a 'no-no' for those who subordinate themselves to fashion. So, now we've sloughed that crowd, I can go on to explain that the hero of the book is presented with some work ... he's bowled over to be given the opportunity to do it, and when asked for a quote, he says something like ... 'how much? I should be paying you'. This leads on to my personal experience (and that of my father's). I don't want to go into detail - only priests enjoy confessionals - but I've had projects that I would've paid to do ... but it's worse than that ... like the decorator in the poem, some of them have ended up being corrupted by the tight fisted who aren't prepared to pay for a job done properly and demand the mutual degradation of 'Quick, Slick and outta here."
November 12, 2012
I always think about what makes a poem ‘good’ and so far, at the ripe old age of eighteen, all I’ve been able to conclude is that a poem is good if it sticks in your mind for hours, days, weeks after you’ve put the book down. It’s not always easy to make a lasting impression upon a mind that consumes (not always voluntarily) thousands of words on a daily basis, but Liam Guilar has succeeded this time around, like he always does, in demanding my attention and my admiration.
The sometimes subtle and otherwise unequivocal humour, the woven intertextuality, the honesty, the history…Rough Spun to Close Weave is as much a learning experience as it is an adventure. It is a collection of voices all letting you in on the secrets of life, love and everything in between, some of which you might have known and others you never did.
He might not have a time machine and Paris in the ‘20s might have to wait but until then, I have this book and the only tour guide I would trust to take me through history – G the brilliant AP.
The sometimes subtle and otherwise unequivocal humour, the woven intertextuality, the honesty, the history…Rough Spun to Close Weave is as much a learning experience as it is an adventure. It is a collection of voices all letting you in on the secrets of life, love and everything in between, some of which you might have known and others you never did.
He might not have a time machine and Paris in the ‘20s might have to wait but until then, I have this book and the only tour guide I would trust to take me through history – G the brilliant AP.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews