Dreaming Frankenstein and Collected Poems

by Liz Lochhead

Liz Lochhead has built an impressive reputation as poet, playwright and performer attracting a large and admiring public. Dreaming & Collected Poems stands as a monument to her early four collections Memo for Spring (1972), Islands (1978) and Grimm Sisters (1981) and the title volume together provide a complete record of her poetry from 1967 to 1984. In Dreaming Frankenstein human relationships, especially as seen from a woman's point of view, are central. Attraction, pain, acceptance, loss, triumphs and deceptions all are made immediate through her imagery and acute powers of observation and through her flair as a storyteller.

Genres: Poetry, Scotland

194 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Liz Lochhead is a Scottish poet and dramatist, originally from Newarthill in North Lanarkshire. In the early 1970s she joined Philip Hobsbaum's writers' group, a crucible of creative activity - other members were Alasdair Gray, James Kelman, and Tom Leonard. Her plays include Blood and Ice, Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off (1987), Perfect Days (2000) and a highly acclaimed adaptation into Scots of Molière's Tartuffe (1985). Her adaptation of Euripides' Medea won the Saltire Society Scottish Book of the Year Award in 2001. Like her work for theatre, her poetry is alive with vigorous speech idioms; collections include True Confessions and New Clichés (1985), Bagpipe Muzak (1991) and Dreaming Frankenstein: and Collected Poems (1984). She has collaborated with Dundee singer-songwriter Michael Marra.

In January 2011 she was named as the second Scots Makar, or national poet, succeeding Edwin Morgan who had died the previous year.

Reviews

[Stuart Kenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much in this! So much imagination, so well written. Love this.

[Bruce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lochhead writes verse that is not only exhibits great wit, but also manages to be both accessible and challenging. She juxtaposes images across time and geography and comes up with poems that are fresh and new even those drawn from human emotions old enough to be the subjects of folklore and mythology.

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you could frame a book...

This collection of poems of Liz Lochead from 1967 - 1984 is a complete joy. Her eye for detail, ability to capture the universal, or summarise life, love, loss in a palmful of words is unparalleled. A giant star in the Scottish literary cosmos.


“No love is not a Steembeck
a heart is not
an editing machine - we can cut
out nothing ignore everything
except what we want to see.
Ribbon of dreams,
have we put together too much
from scanty footage?”

From In The Cutting Room

[Ophelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful collection of poetry and prose.

[Jacob Stevenson · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first and only foray into poetry, some really moving stuff about relationships and human experience.

[scarlettraces · Rating 5 out of 5]

sharp/vicious poetry that hasn't aged. and now i'm old to appreciate some of it as well.

[Lysergius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent narratives...