Bernard Harrington

Lost for Words Bernard Harrington

'There are many surprising moments in these poems: 'A frog rasping his see-saw serenade calls up the crescent moon.' 'Blessed are the cyclists.' 'a single butterfly chases its shadow.' It's the sharp unexpectedness of these moments, these sightings, that appeal to me. It isn't just a matter of observation. It's about focus, the poet's mind in the poem, an active seeing and feeling. At such moments the poet isn't imposing on the world but welcoming the world in. It's a shaping, of course, an imaging, not a passive reception. I think that's one of the things poetry is for: mind working in the world, world working on the mind.' Jeremy Hooker 'A poet of wry observation and deft description; equally at home in Wales and the world outside. These finely-crafted poems are a vital read.' Mike Jenkins I like the poem(s) 'Mair o Benrhys' very much, especially the interplay of the elemental and the religious. The dramatic figuring of that relationship in the shucked off snakeskin is terrific. The range of voices and forms, from the loose structure of 'Earth' and 'Water', to the tightly controlled villanelle of 'Air' is impressive and assured. Kevin Mills