Other books that might interest you

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  I Daniel Blake

  Dave Johns

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  'I, Daniel Blake, am a citizen, nothing more, nothing less.'
  Dan is a carpenter. A Geordie through and through. He had a heart attack recently, but he's on the mend now.
  Katie has just arrived from London. She's finally got a council flat, somewhere for her and her daughter, Daisy. A fresh start.
  In adversity, people come together. But when the system is stacked against you, how does anyone get by? With 14.5 million people (Joseph Rowntree Foundation 2022 Poverty Report) living in poverty in the UK, this is not fiction. It is reality.
  I, Daniel Blake was originally a film – directed by Ken Loach, written by Paul Laverty and produced by Rebecca O'Brien for Sixteen Films – which won the 2016 Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. This touching and vital stage adaptation by Dave Johns, who played Dan in the film, toured the UK in 2023, co-produced by tiny dragon Productions, Northern Stage, Birmingham Rep and ETT, in association with Cardboard Citizens.
  'A gut-wrenching tragicomic drama… Paul Laverty's brilliantly insightful script finds much that is moving (and often surprisingly funny) in the unbreakable social bonds of so-called "broken Britain".'Guardian on Ken Loach's film

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  Drive

  Elaine Sexton

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  " Silently / pulling for itself, / the will wants the body to // give it what it wants," Sexton writes in " Between the Car and the Sea," at once a description of a car' s body propelling her onward, and of the poet herself, the one behind the wheel of this masterful fourth collection. In an extraordinary act of volition, the author does not stop at the trope of ambition, but powers instead toward the urgent concerns of the will, and intention.
  
  
  In Drive, Sexton explores our most fragile points of connection— to lovers and family, to the living and the dead, and to oneself, one' s own life' s work— with the care and wisdom of one who knows these roads. In her hands, these delicate boundaries become navigable. They are both her route and her destination.

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  A Requiem For What Could Have Been

  Zachary Phillips

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  I wrote these poems incrementally, but collated, edited, and recorded them collectively. A process that was at first therapeutic and then brutally revealing. A lot of the pieces touch upon regret, lost possibilities, and missed opportunities born of trauma, neglect, mental illness, and fear, as well as the desperation that comes when you find yourself searching for hope inside of darkness.What could’ve been and what is, are not the same thing. A lot of my pain comes from an inability to reconcile those two disparate facets of my existence. I know I can’t have everything I want, no one can. But when you are broken, it can be hard to know what you want, let alone have any idea of how to attain it.Thus, I write. I write to heal, to express the darkness within, to get it onto the page, and into the light. To understand myself and to understand my understanding of the world.If you resonate with my words I encourage you to write some of your own - it will help.what could have beenis brokenand what isfeels like a dreamthese words servedas a temporary anchoragainst the swirling chaosof a corrupted soullonging for restwritingsaved my lifeeditingalmost killed mei hopeit wasworth it

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  Burritt's Rapids and Beyond

  Louis Contant, Wilma Brown

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  n BURRITT’S RAPIDS AND BEYOND, “whatever flows, remains.” From Winnipeg, Vancouver, Montreal, and rural Ontario, Louis Contant considers his place in the world. Fireflies, whip-poor-wills, squirrels, dragonflies, waterfalls, and the soulful notes of a sonata drift through these meditations on nature, spirituality, writing, love, family, friendship, and music. Louis’ poems inhabit sorrow and suffering yet are rich with praise, delighting in the comforts and joys of ritual and routine alongside brevity and ephemera. Whether considering the “alpine range” of Auden’s contributions to literature, the solitude of the poet, the “molded contours” of friendship, the possibility of life on other planets, or the cedar cottage sweetness of home, Louis reminds us that “what really matters is happening all the time / without us.” 
  With humour, wit, and humbleness, Louis confronts his own mortality and celebrates human connection in an age of technology and social unrest. Playful rhymes and uncompromising narratives are accompanied by the poet’s feisty resilience and tuneful undercurrents of grace. 
  Published posthumously, and compiled and contextualized by the poet’s wife, Wilma Brown, Burritt’s Rapids and Beyond showcases and pays tribute to the life of one wise and curious man. At its heart, this book asks what it means to truly belong to this world, to live in it with pleasure and reverence, trying not to step on any wildflowers.

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  Paper Gun

  Robert Redbone

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  Paper Gun is a compelling  tale of life, love and emotion.  
  When a  trip to Reno  to get married turns into  a life-changing adventure for  young lovers Johnny and Heather.  
   Running from the law, the media and their own mistakes the  two inexperienced criminals find their way forward on an unexpected path to a better life. 
  Author Robert Redbone  reveals the details at a brisk pace . A clever resourceful novel  of love , morality  and  life’s realities

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  My Land of Freedom - A poem of...

  Ifeanyi Njoku

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  This poem is a powerful reflection on war, displacement, and the struggle for freedom. It tells the tragic story of a people who fought for liberation but were met with violence, loss, and eventual surrender. Likely referencing the Igbo experience during the Nigerian Civil War, it captures the pain of oppression and the resilience of those who endured it. 
  The poem begins with a contradiction: "In my land of freedom, I walked with fear." This highlights the irony of living in a place meant to be free but being consumed by anxiety. The people demand justice, yet their cries are silenced by violence. The line "Killing our brothers, and leaving us undone" conveys both physical loss and emotional devastation. 
  The imagery of "scorching soil" and "separated from families" paints a picture of suffering and displacement. War does not just take lives—it tears families apart and leaves hearts unable to thrive. The mention of "refugee camps" emphasizes how many were forced from their homes, left to question their identity: "Are we unlucky, to be Igbo?" This speaks to a deep sense of abandonment and injustice. 
  The poem also highlights betrayal, as leaders fail to protect their people. "Everyone was a soldier, in this war we couldn't win." This line captures the grim reality of a war where survival itself was a battle. Despite their bravery, they were up against overwhelming forces. 
  The final lines are heartbreaking: "We had to surrender, and say goodbye to our pride." This is not just a loss of battle but a loss of dignity. Yet, even in surrender, their story lives on. This poem is a tribute to resilience, a reminder of suffering, and a call to remember those who fought, even when the world turned away.

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