Clairvoyance

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Clairvoyance

Category:	Poetry
Author:	James Graham
Publisher:	Matador
Price:	£5.99
ISBN:	9781906221089
Pages:	76
Reviewed in issue:	7

Calm, modest, reassuring, outward-looking... all of this struck me when I picked up James Graham’s excellent collection of poetry, and all before I had opened the book. The cover is so appealing, it sets the tone for what is to follow inside, and after such a good cover the text inside does not disappoint. This is a cut above the usual poetry collection, especially a lot of poetry that is self published and which should have been strangled at birth!

Graham has the knack of giving a sense of place in a very few words; many of the poems in this collection are set in Scotland, and within a few words you are there, in the highlands. Yet we are looking at the details here; in ‘Stone’ we learn of a stone he has taken from a river; in ‘Kirbuster Farm, Orkney’ we become immersed in peat along with the previous occupants. But there are other delights to be found here, all conveyed with a thoughtful and reassuring tone, all evocative of time and place; and usually taking us beyond the bounds of the book we are reading, as good poetry should.

This is a lively, intelligent and thoughtful collection of poetry, with wide ranging subject matters, this is a delightful find and one that will definitely tempt readers already familiar with this poet’s work, but hopefully also new readers in search of something a little deeper. An excellent read, one that I would definitely recommend without hesitation.

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