Blue Around the Edges: Poems - Paperback

by June Sawers (Author)

Blue Around the Edges is a combination of memoir, family history, and journalism: a cathartic way of making sense of the world. The poems often capture small moments in time, such as savouring a fine meal in an upscale restaurant. They also include a few memorials to famous and not-so-famous people, including the sudden death of a friend. But they also revolve around various themes and topics: art (Frida Kahlo), theatre (Hamilton), film (Paul Schrader, Alfonso Cuarón, Quentin Tarantino), place (Scotland, Iceland, Norway, Mexico), music (Joni Mitchell, Amy Winehouse, Bruce Springsteen, and others), politics (but not always the usual kind), immigration (from a personal perspective), and the end of things. Some of the poems were written during the pandemic and periods of social unrest, which often lends a shadowy hue to the collection although there are also occasional bursts of humour.

"Touching on subjects as wide-ranging as grammar atrocities, the inhumanity of man, and the vulnerability of death, the author moves from the quietly disturbing to the jarringly joyful movements of life. Her poems are vivid, sometimes gritty-always compelling. Her poetry is wise and beautiful: a reminder that intelligent writing can be steeped in memorable lyricism."--Terry Loncaric, author of Poetry in an Age of Panic

Born in Glasgow, Scotland, June Sawers is a writer and editor and the author of The Water Is Wide: Celtic Poems on Time, Memory, and Loss and the chapbook Napoleon in Rags: Music Poems.