Dorothy

“One evening
when they are sitting quietly together
she breaks the silence
and starts to talk”

Dorothy tells the complete story of a Yorkshire woman, in verse, from her birth early in the last century to her death in the first years of this. Like so many of her generation, she lived a life both ordinary and extraordinary; shaded by grief, troubled by family dynamics, and restricted by the realities of class, location and gender. Hers was a life where survival itself, the simple act of continuing, was a victory to be celebrated – but one where the reminders of why we continue, the blinding moments of sunshine when the clouds part, were that much sweeter because of it.

Tender and insightful, harrowing and uplifting, Dorothy is a stunning act of empathy from a son towards his mother. Her story, told through the author’s assured, unpretentious verse, is both specific and universal enough to resonate with all who encounter it; to challenge some, heal others, and leave a lasting impression on the world Dorothy came to love.

“Startling and tender.” — Poetry Book Society

“I have read nothing like it … a work of near genius.” — James Nash