The Nailmakers’ Daughters
Emma shares this collection with poets Marion Cockin and Iris Rhodes. It is a beautiful book of Black Country-themed poetry which has been thoughtfully edited by Jane Seabourne. Emma’s third of the book contains family and work-related poems which rub shoulders with a recipe for grey paes and a conversation between two flamingoes in Dudley Zoo.
“The daughters of the title are three poets with deep roots in the Black Country: Emma Purshouse, Iris Rhodes and Marion Cockin. The book also does what it says in the title, that is draws its inspiration from that area north west of Birmingham geographically undefined but very present.
The editor has done a good job in finding three poets whose work does chime and complement each other and thus has a coherence which some collections do not. In a way, this is not surprising as, with similar roots, they draw on a shared experience. Many of the poems refer back to childhood, a rich vein for any poet, but their approach and style are their own.”
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