Grain

by John Glenday

Though John Glenday has long been admired for his lyrically delicate and emotionally powerful poetry, he has remained something of a well-kept secret. His third collection, Grain , makes his singular talent available to a wider audience. Sometimes Glenday's poems are forcefully direct; sometimes they are so quiet they feel as if they were composed within a capacious listening, as a form of secular prayer. Glenday's seamless lyric can also disguise some wild and surreal the Beauty and the Beast told in reverse, a bizarre list of new saints, or a can of peaches waiting for the invention of the tin-opener. However, the lasting impression is of a genuinely spiritual poet, one with the ability to turn every earthly detail towards the same clear light. Grain announces Glenday as an essential voice in contemporary poetry.

Genres: Poetry

64 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2009

Reviews

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

The poems in John Glenday's Grain are unassumingly stoic and plainspoken, ranging from wistful and tender to self-deprecating to harrowing ("Song" and "Grain" have, unfortunately, particularly unforgettable images). Even when he jolts the reader, though, all of the work in this succinct volume has a strong underpinning of humanity and wry compassion.

Grain was recently shortlisted for the 2010 International Griffin Poetry Prize. The judges' citation captures well the essence of this deservedly nominated work:

"[Glenday] listens carefully to the language he works in. [His poems are] also playful: a tin can, a peculiar fish, invented translations, made-up saints all can suggest poems. It’s refreshing to discover a poet whose work is earthly, full of rivers and hills and islands, but where old ideas like ‘love’ and ‘soul’ have not been banished. Grain is the work of an unhurried craftsman; John Glenday has made poems of understated integrity and humanity."

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got to listen to John at a poetry reading recently, and before he even spoke I knew I was going to like him.
His style is everything I love when it comes to poetry and I devoured this book so quickly and tabbed so many poems!
It was amazing to meet him and get my book signed (and turns out he's a fan of photography like me!)
This is now officially one of my favourite collections, and John has become one of my all time favourite poets. I can't wait to read more of his work!

[Keith Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I had a complaint about this book, it would be that it's too short! But, then, the shortness is also indicative of why I like it so much. These short lyrics feel well considered, as if Glenday took a long time with them, putting them to paper only when he felt their absolute necessity. Although there is wit in these poems, there is never any frivolity. In fact, maybe a little something that lacked consequence might help leaven the book.

Still, this is very clean work, strong and straightforward. Glenday is comfortable in his place, and uses his local references under the assumption that we will all understand their necessity even if we don't carry any connotation to those places. That is an incredible confidence.

Plus he is willing to engage the big ideas. The title poem, for instance, is only twelve lines long, yet it convinces with the idea that we are destroyed by what we do most passionately. The poem ends, "Friends, we're all done for by the things we do./If I were a farmer, I'd shrink from the ripening grain." And that last sentence is the only reference to the title of the book in the whole collection. What are we to make of that? Is the poet shrinking from the power he finds hidden in his own short poems? Maybe. And that tension opens up something powerful.

[J.C. Reilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some lovely poems here but I felt the collection as a whole was a bit uneven.

[Bongod · Rating 3 out of 5]

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