Like nesting dolls indeed, these are poems of tender love and longing which open out to encompass a century or more of family history. They are poems of emigration and alienation, of love and loss, brought alive by the detail in Kathryn Metcalfe’s writing. I particularly liked the longing evoked in ‘Back Court’ where the patch of blue sky grows smaller every day, even ‘weeds would be welcome here’ and the young woman’s sigh is a small brown bird reaching for freedom. In Seanchaidh/Storyteller, the title character comes to life as ‘Ancient campfires burned / in his eyes as he worked / the fabric of hand me down / stories’.

The poems come to us as snapshots, scattered and seemingly random, in much the same way that family history is remembered and shared.

(Jennie Turnbull, Writer)

Diana Devlin has the ability to let your mind wander randomly here and there through her words, to dump your preconceptions in a ditch and then hold your hand as you turn a corner into another poem of originality and force. This collection by its very title is a full frontal embrace of crafted words. Let her take your hand - you won’t regret it.

(Jim MacKintosh, poet)

Allan's poetry never fails to surprise and delight. In Memory of Waves. he uses the imagery of the sea to invoke intense feelings about ' our eternal now'.   He portrays compassion in a range of poetic forms. 'Cloth' is a favourite of mine as he asks 'weave me new' in an extended metaphor. In Lost 'you are the light on the other side of hope' is a beautifully evocative ending.

 On the other hand, his prose poems on diseases show his dark humour as they are insinuatingly menacing as he takes on the personas of the diseases and warns us 'I'm not dead yet'.

 This collection of poems shows his versatility and skill in the use of language as well as his humour and compassion.

(Ann McKinnon, poet)

The three poets in this collection have a lot in common. They’re gritty, tough, their observation is born of personal experience, not all of it pleasant. That is recommendation enough but there are many moments too of pure revelation. Donna Campbell’s pearls brimming with moonlight that are the bi-product of pain, the stark beauty of Lesley Benzie’s poem about a father’s death ‘Fan she an her sester met their faither’s unbent gaze…’ and Linda Jackson picking up ‘petals of words from smart-dressed lovers’.  Such simple beauty is not easily achieved. At its best poetry can be both empathetic and transformative. This is it, at its best.

(Hugh McMillan, poet)

In this fine first collection of lyric poetry, Goldie explores the contrast between the urban experience - the ravages of post-industrial economic decline, and the liberating, rugged landscapes of Scotland, with a range of precise imagery and deft phrasing that examines the complexities of both, and the relationship between them.

We also glimpse tender family vignettes, which are all the more moving for being set against this wider historical backdrop.

Rhythm is deployed with great skill, and underscores time’s relentless onward movement in Conachair (‘Saint Kilda’s screaming cliffs and stacks,’) and in Sligrachan (‘the screams of ghosts from empty yards/through the pulsing heart of that great city’)

A very impressive debut indeed.

(A Breckenridge, poet)

In this superb collection, a pair of Jackdaws build a nest and hatch their young in a ‘gash in one of the window panels’. Fulton unfolds events with deadpan humour, some visceral descriptions, and an unerring eye for concrete detail in this series of short lyrics. He expertly weaves in detail from everyday life, and uncanny observations from the streets of Paisley (‘a sparkly unicorn in a high window’) and beyond (‘a flattened dragonfly/in the centre of a road’) and never once assumes the affection that emerges for ‘Jack and Jill’ is reciprocated. (‘they don’t give a toss/if I’m here or not’). Indeed, Jack’s voice is not one to be messed with. These poems explore the relationship between humankind and nature in an urban environment with wit, craft, profundity, and warmth in an immensely satisfying and positive evocation of nature and new life.

(Andy Breckenridge, poet)

A Kist of Treasure: John Maclean is surely that. Martin Goldie brings to life in verse one of Scotland’s greatest ‘Man o the People’. Here, a hundred years after Maclean’s death, Goldie’s reverence for a true hero comes across in his own fine penmanship.

There are just not enough books on Maclean and there are definitely far too few poems and songs about the man – Goldie has gone some way to putting this right.

(Dr. Joe Murray)

Jim Ferguson has ten books of poetry already under his belt and this latest collection is a most welcome addition to his vast repertoire. A particular favourite is Domestic Day, a slow meandering through house-hold chores that Ferguson turns into pleasures, whilst the making of soup becomes a meditation in nourishment, soup wae wine, a Vikings shield against the snowfall.

Songs for Lara is more than just a love story, it’s a story of love found between the lines, or in the secret places where we sometimes fear to venture. 

 (Donna Campbell, poet)

Donna Campbell’s first collection may be called ‘Mongrel’ but it is purebred poetry.  Her use of words, especially in the Glaswegian vernacular, combine with images to form brutally beautiful poems about aspects of life that less fearless poets might shun.  (Lesley Benzie, poet)

If you want your poetry as a lulled accompaniment to whatever you happen to be doing - don't read Jo Gilbert. If you like your Doric couthie and couth, paired with a wee sepia photo - don't read Jo Gilbert. But if you need poetry that makes you 'Get aff that fuckin horse. Now!' , and opens your 'kohl clarted eyes' to garr ye greet and laugh aloud...then read Jo Gilbert. And what a titular poem. Three lines, punching hard with every word. What a debut.

(Beth McDonough, writer)

Reaching the Light is a book for lovers of wonderfully crafted poetry. Eveline Pye’s enlightening, painful recollections of her childhood and her relationship with an abusive mother are told with dazzling skill. As a child, she despairs, no one is trying to save me. Later comes the realisation that her own loving part is immured in stone. We are also told that daughters…with courage and time to heal…can break free. This book is therapeutic and cathartic – it may ease pain and spread understanding, especially amongst those who have suffered parental abuse.

Reaching the Light is a survivor’s collection and should be read as widely as possible.

(Johnny Woods, retired Consultant Psychiatrist, Glasgow)

'Lesley's poetry is lyrical, insightful, and poignant with moments of deep memory. I love how her work can both be formally inventive and also rooted in the natural world, a seamless marriage of mood which makes this collection a wonderful experience from beginning to end.'

(Beth Cochrane)

Mairi Jack

1953-2022

Mairi was born and raised in Motherwell. She had a mostly unhappy school life, but attended Langside College  after leaving school and gained a place in Glasgow University where she studied English Literature. She had been an avid reader as a child and at University she developed a lifelong love of literature and poetry. One of her lecturers was Edwin Morgan who she admired greatly and was delighted when one of her poems was included in ’The Centenary Collection’ to mark what would have been his 100th birthday. Mairi had a career in Journalism becoming Women's Editor at Paisley Daily Express. She went on to work as a teacher supporting children with special needs. Despite a long-term ambition to pursue creative writing, this did not materialise until later in life when she finally joined an inspirational class and workshop run by Dr. Linda Jackson. Much of the work contained in this collection is the result of a surge of creative energy unleashed by these classes and the friends which she made there. She would have been proud of this book, and it is a wonderful legacy for her family and friends. 

‘Breathe In’ is a collection of contrasts; with a scope both modest and ambitious, local and international, street-wise and philosophical. There is an overwhelming feeling, as you navigate through its delicately curated pages, that you are experiencing a life in motion – not a mundane archiving of material but a vibrant rekindling of significant moments. This juxtaposition of works from across decades creates an enjoyable friction between the pieces, lending the whole collection a unique temporal electricity. An invitation to Breathe In and connect with our past selves, Dolan’s work deserves to be appreciated by an audience as diverse as his inspiration.’

(Kevin P. Gilday)

‘Throughout 'The Sounds That Men Make' Allan Gaw, like a ethnographic cartographer, maps the difficult, often treacherous and at times absurd landscape of contemporary masculinities. Inhabiting diverse personae and positions, including alien observers, he navigates the sensitivities and conundrums, the bonds and the rivalries, contradictory role models, the inherited behaviours and prejudices, internal conflicts, the joys, desires, the fears, along with the silences and struggles to overcome expectations and stereotypes. Gaw presents a topography of masculine voices, asking which we identify with, which we recognise, which we react against, and in doing so opens up a much-needed discussion on what it means to be a man in the 21st Century.’

(Bob Beagrie, writer)