Lavender Hyacinth Violet Yew

Coral Wylie

Summary

'A garden without a traditional English rose is a cardinal sin – and I committed eight of those before my Ready Brek'
Nineteen-year-old Pip is trying to find themselves through gardening. But with a dad more interested in plants than people and a mum stuck in the past, they're left to ponder life's questions alone.
Then one day, they uncover a jacket in the attic that's been gathering dust. Bold, vibrant and very '80s, in its pocket lies a diary belonging to someone long gone. Swept up in the mystery, Pip digs into the past, unearthing secrets about an old friend their parents don't want to discuss…
Funny, affecting and beautifully queer, Coral Wylie's play Lavender, Hyacinth, Violet, Yew tracks one family's efforts to assuage the past and plant the seeds of a better future. It was shortlisted for the Alfred Fagon Award in 2023 and premiered at the Bush Theatre, London, in 2025, directed by Debbie Hannan and starring Omari Douglas, Pooky Quesnel and Wil Johnson alongside the playwright.

Available since: 03/06/2025.

Print length: 128 pages.

Other books that might interest you

Transitory Angels

Jeff D. Wilson

Nature’s infinite beauty: Such a lovely place to disappear forever. 
Despite growing health issues, private investigator Jack Malchenko is giving his best effort at retirement. With his wife Angela busy with photography engagements he's grown bored with the sedentary lifestyle. Far away from his former police work, Jack enjoys camping with his father Taima White Elk. Their time together has gradually repaired their once volatile relationship. Their latest trip together ends abruptly when the RCMP hires Taima to track a killer, who is stalking tourists on Highway 16. Jack’s old partner, Sam Rausch, is in charge of the investigation and makes it clear, Taima will work alone. 
    An alienated and dissatisfied Jack stumbles onto a case of two teen boys who went missing off the Highway of Tears. Cam McLoud and Bryson Schimel recently graduated from a high school they never fit into. They were on the way to Alaska where the promise of new jobs and more exciting lives awaited. Cam’s father hires Jack to find some answers for their disappearance. After another vicious attack, Taima realizes that unearthed clues left at the crime scene might be germane to Jack’s current investigation.  
    When the pair team up for a dangerous pursuit through the wilds of the Canadian Rockies, old wounds and past failures come back to haunt them. Taima must face his most diabolical unsolved case involving the legendary serial killer…the Catskill Ripper Transitory Angels is a taut psychological thriller set in the secluded wilderness of British Columbia. With diversified and unforgettable characters, it pulls you into a story filled with dark secrets, loving bonds, and chilling discoveries that refuse to stay hidden. Transitory Angels- Book 2 of the Highway of Tears Series.

Show book

Greekling

Kostya Tsolakis

Greekling,the much-anticipated debut poetry collection by Kostya Tsolakis, celebrates and commemorates damaged and rejected Greek bodies, be they of flesh and blood, made of marble, or natural bodies. In intertwining Greek culture, history and poetic influences with the contemporary queer experience, this collection is perceptive, lyrical, and deeply evocative of time and place. From an Athenian childhood to a closeted adolescence in the shadow of the AIDS epidemic, towards sexual self-discovery, maturity and freedom – Tsolakis charts the pursuit of unconditional happiness.
These poems explore queer joy on dance floors, darkrooms and bedsits, but also the risks of crossing strangers' thresholds or in encountering the violent machismo and hypermasculine expectations of the society you grow up in. And ever-present through the collection is Athens – the city the poet once turned his back on at eighteen but has come to love again. Moving between lament and celebration, Greekling reflects on a changing and often misrepresented country, the nature of motherlands and mother tongues; it is a voyage out – and a return.

Show book

Skyscraper Lullaby (NHB Modern...

James Fritz

A powerful drama about two parents trying to come to terms with the disappearance of their toddler, written and first performed as an audio drama for Audible Original.
As they recount the events surrounding the disappearance of their toddler – one with a tendency to bite – two parents cope with grief in vastly different ways. While the father wrestles with feelings of guilt, the mother is convinced she's spotted the boy in frightening TV news reports… though let's just say he looks nothing like the precocious little boy they remember from a decade ago.
James Fritz's Skyscraper Lullaby is a haunting examination of the ways we cope with tragedy, complicity, and remorse. It was first produced as an audio play for Audible Original in 2022.

Show book

Loss-iLahleko (A National...

Qhali, Sanela Lasta Mkhize,...

Loss-iLahleko (A National Choreopoem): The Audio Experience invites you on a heartfelt journey of loss and return. This audio adaptation brings the choreopoem from the full-length book Loss-iLahleko (A National Choreopoem) to life, offering a deeply moving literary and sonic experience.
The full-length book is a richly layered work with four parts: a multilingual choreopoem exploring loss through songs and poems by South African female authors in Indigenous languages and English; short South African stories reflecting the lived experiences of countless women and children, including Finding Katlego and Palesa's Lockdown Escape by Elaine Pillay, Elo Phupho by Bulelwa Sigcau, and Fizza by Qhali; motivational reminders offering hope; and key information on Gender-Based Violence (GBV). Each piece sensitively weaves forms of GBV into a tapestry of voices that speak to resilience, suffering, and healing.
This audiobook immerses listeners in the vivid worlds of the choreopoem, seamlessly moving between English and South Africa’s Indigenous languages. It reflects the resilience, trauma, and strength of women and children while echoing the languages of their mothers, bearing witness to the persistent uncertainty and lack of security in the land they call home.
Loss-iLahleko is SA’s first multilingualised book series on GBV, written and translated into 11 books by extraordinary South African female writers in all the country’s official languages. To explore the full book, visit the publisher’s website.
Trigger Warning: This experience includes themes of GBV which may be distressing for some listeners. Please listen with care.
Executive Producer, Producer, Creative Director, Curator, Music Co-Producer & Arranger: Qhali
Music Composer, Sound Engineer, Sound Design & Post Production: Yaw Bannerman
Music Co-Producer, Lead Music Performer, Arranger: Lasta
Music Performer 2: Nonkuthalo Kolweni

Show book

Journey - Poems

Wade Hudson

Journey is a collection of poems that offers a reflective look at various periods and experiences of Wade Hudson's life journey. There are poems about growing up in Mansfield, LA, a small, Jim Crow town in the south and the people who nurtured him and loved him. There are poems about the Black struggle for freedom and justice. Also included are poems that offer words of wisdom gained over years as an activist and Black cultural advocate. Poet and author Tony Medina calls Journey a "collection of lifelong wealth, experience, wisdom, and passion." Writer and literary critic E. Ethelbert Miller says "Wade Hudson's journey continues beyond the last page. His book is a baton to be passed to the next generation. His writing hand is filled with love."

Show book

Censors - with append

Mike Blake

CENSORS ::This Is a short poem about the subject of Censorship.Is it truly effective, and who are the Censors. Self censorship and evading the censors.There is also a new Censors Append to the Poem, which has been recorded seperately.More Poetry from the same Author:   https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00SG40RM8on Twitter: @miko_1_dollarInstagram:  wild_poetrys   //    wild.poetry.webs ~ Tumblr : ccobesor on Facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/new.poets.cornerTikTok: @mikeccoPoets Insta: Website: wwww.wild-poetry.com

Show book