Bricks and Ballads

The first collection of poetry in over five years from one of the United Kingdom's major poets, these poems reflect the shadows of the greater, known world. As bulldozers tear through a Victorian school, the generosity of the school's founders, the green graceful bell tower, and the nesting jackdaws crying in the air evoke a sense of loss and remembrance. The poetic singing of a woman in a kitchen, Handel at his illicit feast, and Shakespeare as he stops for breath on the stairs nudge humanity forward as these poems turn what is lost in the shouts into song.

Alison Brackenbury is the author of many poetry collections, including 1829, Breaking Ground, Christmas Roses, Dreams of Power, and Selected Poems.