More Than You Were

by Christina Thatcher

In July 2013, David Thatcher died of a drug overdose in America. More than you were was written by his daughter, to try to understand what came after. The result is a striking collection of poetry which explores addiction, family politics, childhood memories and grief. Her short, sharp poems home in on situations to reveal their complex relationship and the challenges she faced after losing him. A brave debut, More than you were  explores what it means to lose a father to an addiction and live on. Shortlisted for the Bare Fiction Debut Poetry Collection Competition 2015 judged by Andrew McMillan.

Genres: Poetry

120 pages, Paperback

Published July 1, 2017

About the author

Christina Thatcher grew up between a farm and a ranch house in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. She won a Marshall Scholarship to study in the UK and now lectures at Cardiff University. Her poetry and short stories have been widely published in literary magazines, including Ambit, Poetry Wales, The North and The Poetry Review. She has published two earlier collections, More than you were and How to Carry Fire. Christina has toured internationally, reading her work in the UK, USA, Canada, Costa Rica, Switzerland and Romania. She lives with her gardener husband, Rich, and their cat, Miso.

Reviews

[Jessica Shelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heart-wrenching poetry collection filled with grief, trauma, tenderness & hopeful healing. Thatcher captures moments, big and small, so well, its like a haunting punch.

[Esteban Alonso Ramírez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read it multiple times, and each one of them impacts me in a new, different and intense way.
Thatcher's poetry has a raw honesty and subtle power that gets you out of your comfort zone over and over again. And you will thank her for it - many of the stories and topics are starkly necessary, either as denounce or as a way to deal with your own personal story and a way to open your eyes to the pain we usually ignore in others. We go through how grief, abuse, addictions, sexism, and solitude can hit a sensitive, intelligent heart - but also through how strong, resilient, and full of love such heart can be thanks to the power of words and the love we find in our way. A carefully sculpted tribute to the best in human beings in the face of adversity.

[Matthew Tett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb poetry dealing with an emotive subject - but without sentimentality. Thatcher writes candidly about her father; about his death and what she has learnt from the experience. Varied emotions are clear, from heartfelt grief through to anger and love - everything that someone’s death can cause. I relished this collection and each short poem (many no more than one stanza) says so much. In this work, it is often ‘less is more’ and this is definitely no mean feat. Read, absorb slowly and appreciate Christina Thatcher’s work.

[Răzvan Ionescu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Christina Thatcher's father died in July 2013. These poems are her trying to make sense of that: dealing with grief, making sense of the world, learning to live with death a part of your life. The lack of closure, the lack of happy endings, the flashbacks of substance abuse, emotional abuse and physical abuse. And still he leaves a void. And still there is regret, and a dark spiral of sadness.

It's heavy stuff. The writing is simple, honest and direct, as if she's staring you in the eyes.

[Sylvia Clare · Rating 5 out of 5]

again another painfully powerful set of poems that leave you emotionally breathless. Ican relate to so much of what she says and yet others i cannot imagine feeling like that. worth a read just for the raw emotional energy and expert use of words

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really moving poetry collection - short sharp poems which cut straight to the heart.

[Ashley Lister · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a powerful piece of writing that encounters love and loss from the perspective of a truly unique voice.