The Friday Poem

A poem every Friday

The Frip

Photo of Aaron Kent. He has brown hair and a beard.

Unicorn flavour

We talk to Aaron Kent, poet, editor, and publisher of Broken Sleep Books
Big white text on a black background. Parts of the words "The" and "Big" . Its striking if you like that monochrome block capitals kind of thing.

Meanwhile in Camelot

Helena Nelson reviews The Big Calls by Glyn Maxwell (Live Canon, 2023)
Headshots of 12 reviewers. They are smiling or looking intently at the camera.

What do our new regular reviewers say?

Our new reviewers to tell us what they think about poetry and reviewing
Black and white photograph of Edgar Allan Poe. He looks intently at the camera.

How Edgar Allan Poe became the darling of the maligned and misunderstood

Scott Peeples on the weary-but-wise image of Edgar Allan Poe
Section of the book cover. What looks like rows of small squareish woodblock shapes in pinky red on a yellow background.

Inside fire what you get is fire

Victoria Moul reviews Heritage Aesthetics by Anthony Anaxagorou (Granta, 2022)
Photograph of a set of dentures.

This barter of enthusiasm 7

Stephen Payne, Clare Best ands Jeremy Wikeley choose poems by Geoffrey Brock, Mark Doty and W.H. Auden
Photo of Leila Chatti looking at the camera. She has long brown hair and is wearing a black turtleneck sweater and red lipstick.

On Trying To Notice Joy

Polly Atkin on her love of tea, Teaism, and what Leila Chatti's poem 'Tea' means to her
illustration showing a woman with blue skin covered in images, light blue leaves intertwine with pink flowers, a yellow sun on each breast.

Finishing mummy’s pictures

Rachael Matthews reviews The Illustrated Woman by Helen Mort (Chatto & Windus, 2022)
Two book covers, one green, one blue. Sigh.

Two pamphlets that sing together

Isabelle Thompson reviews I Hate to Be the One to Tell You This by Zoë Walkington (Smith|Doorstop, 2023) and Past Tense Future Imperfect by Jon Miller (Smith|Doorstop, 2023)
Photo of Vanessa Kisuule standing in front of a green and purple wall. She is looking to her right and smiling.

punk ballet. Act 1. / there is more to come

Bruno Cooke profiles Bristol-based poet, writer, performer, and slam champion, Vanessa Kisuule


Photograph of Vanessa Kisuule by Jon Aitken
A Friday clearly isn't a Friday without an abstract poetry book cover to describe. I am almost, but not quite, at a loss for words. Here we go, poetry fans! Pop art seems to be the style choice. Purple jagged forks of what looks like lightening cross diagonally passing behind white cloud like formations (although one does seem to have a dark doorway in, so it may not be a cloud). Green ribbons, a blue sky and a red dot top right complete the picture. Ah ... poetry.

I am cobalt and cherry pulp lyric

Tim Murphy reviews VISIONS & FEED by Maria Sledmere (HVTN Press, 2022)
What looks like an ancient Greek plate or bowl. A bloke with a bad back seems to be have been bitten by a snake and he is gesticulating towards a reclining fellow who is possibly having his heart pecked out by a large bird of prey. Lotta blood, but they were rough in them days.

Lots wider inside than it looks

Stephen Payne reviews The Nature Thief by Henry Walters (The Waywiser Press, 2022)