Road Trip

by Marvin Thompson

Road Trip is a striking first collection by a poet with illuminating and entertaining stories to tell and an accomplished craft in using both traditional and contemporary forms in telling them. As a poet of Jamaican heritage, born and raised in north London and now working as a teacher, father of mixed race children, living in south Wales, Marvin Thompson brings together all those passages of place and time in fresh and revealing ways. He explores the underbelly of race and empire in uncovering and inventing stories of his father's time in the British army. He writes with feeling of the post-industrial landscape of Wales and wonders whether this is a place he can bring up his children -- though one should never assume that any of Thompson's poems are factually true. He uses sonnet, adapted villanelle and sestina sequences to tell utterly contemporary stories. Thompson has a refreshing, curious and honest eye that transforms and illuminates the everyday into something special and unique, but also a convincing vision of possibility and even of the uplifting.

Genres: Poetry

Paperback

First published March 5, 2020

Reviews

[Carrie Etter]

An impressive debut of largely narrative poetry, both personal and fictional. I was particularly impressed by "The Baboon Chronicles" and the book's overall engagement with racial issues; "The Weight of the Night," two narrative prose poems, was also original and compelling in its presentation of a speaker who comes to terms with his rape of a former partner.

Recommended!

[Lucy Miles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Harrowing, beautiful and tender.

[Elise Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

1* - it was published
2* - it was genuine, with a clear ‘voice’
3* - it was surprising
4* - it used language in a way I wasn’t expecting
5* - there are pages I want to tear out and take with me

[Josephine Corcoran · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant and aptly-named book that takes us on a journey encompassing the writer's north London upbringing, his Jamaican and African heritage and his current home in mountainous south Wales where he is raising "my Mixed Race children". Thompson demonstrates great poetic range and innovation in this Poetry Book Society Recommended collection. He makes dynamic use of the extended sequence, giving readers time to engage with fictional characters and raw autobiographical detail in this thrillingly original and enlightening book. Definitely recommended. My full review will appear in The North magazine later in 2020.

[Glumdalclitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dynamic, autobiographical and deeply concerned not to simplify the complexity of modern culture and racial injustice. Combines vernacular energy with traditional forms to make remarkable hybrids that speak directly to the reader. Jazz, hip hop, comedy, art, TV are all mined for inspiration and explicitly present as foils to standard poetic sentiment. The dissection of relationships, belonging in the modern age, the psychology of the diasporic family in a place that cares little for your past, memories of British imperialism. Check it out as soon as you can.

[Andre Bagoo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book concerned with the irruption of the past within the present moment, the haunting of history, whether of empires or personality.

[Kim S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Politically powerful, moving, and so relatable for someone who is from a minority background like me.