Happy book birthday to our Summer Recommendation May Day - the long-awaited new poetry collection from one of our best-loved poets and former Makar of Scotland, Jackie Kay. These poems cast an eye over several decades of political activism, from accompanying her parents on Socialist campaigns as a child, through the feminist, LGBT+ and anti-racist movements of the 80s and 90s, up to the present day. Kay brings to life a cast of influential figures: the Jamaican model Fanny Eaton, muse of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood; the poet Audre Lorde; and Nina Simone. Woven through are poems of grief and profound change, infused with the light of love and celebration. Throughout, Kay urges us to stand in solidarity with one another, to let grief beget action rather than despair.
Jackie Kay was born in Edinburgh. Her novel Trumpet won the Guardian Fiction Prize. She has published three collections of stories with Picador, Why Don’t You Stop Talking, Wish I Was Here, and Reality, Reality; two poetry collections, Fiere and Bantam; and her memoir, Red Dust Road. From 2016-21 she was the third modern Makar, National Poet for Scotland. She lives in Manchester and is Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Salford.
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