New and Selected Poems
'Chide the nervous feet and walk straight in.'
Paul Sutherland has been writing and publishing poetry since 1970, with ten collections to his name. This monumental volume includes significant pieces from that period, along with new and unpublished works, constituting a personal epic that spans five decades of writing.
It charts the poet’s life from his Canadian roots to immigration to the UK, from agnosticism to Christianity to Sufi Islam, and from natural wonderment to a greater understanding of the world around us. The collection is in turn heartfelt, philosophical, and beautifully lyrical, as Sutherland lays bare for the reader his experiences and perspectives – at once particular and universal. Completely unique, this is an unflinching and forensic exploration of a life lived through language.
'Chide the nervous feet and walk straight in.'
Paul Sutherland has been writing and publishing poetry since 1970, with ten collections to his name. This monumental volume includes significant pieces from that period, along with new and unpublished works, constituting a personal epic that spans five decades of writing.
It charts the poet’s life from his Canadian roots to immigration to the UK, from agnosticism to Christianity to Sufi Islam, and from natural wonderment to a greater understanding of the world around us. The collection is in turn heartfelt, philosophical, and beautifully lyrical, as Sutherland lays bare for the reader his experiences and perspectives – at once particular and universal. Completely unique, this is an unflinching and forensic exploration of a life lived through language.
'Chide the nervous feet and walk straight in.'
Paul Sutherland has been writing and publishing poetry since 1970, with ten collections to his name. This monumental volume includes significant pieces from that period, along with new and unpublished works, constituting a personal epic that spans five decades of writing.
It charts the poet’s life from his Canadian roots to immigration to the UK, from agnosticism to Christianity to Sufi Islam, and from natural wonderment to a greater understanding of the world around us. The collection is in turn heartfelt, philosophical, and beautifully lyrical, as Sutherland lays bare for the reader his experiences and perspectives – at once particular and universal. Completely unique, this is an unflinching and forensic exploration of a life lived through language.
Praise for Paul Sutherland:
‘This is serious poetry, often reflecting on the frailties of close relationships, yet in his quest to define these fragilities Sutherland shows us his strength not only of character but of his lyrical writing quality. Highly recommended.’
– Antony Owen, Morning Star
‘Paul Sutherland makes a poetry of contradiction: psychological and intellectual inquiry are matched by a ready emotional depth; epic and intimate scales overlap; it’s homeless and historically rooted; free and exact.’
– Ian Duhig
‘Haunting, elegant and deeply spiritual, a rare treat, full of imagery, pathos, loss, humour and triumph, somewhere between music and prose.’
– Magdalena Chavez
‘A splendidly sustained contemplative quality.’
– Sam Gardiner
‘This is a superb sequence of poems. They have wonderful economy and stillness.’
– Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, on ‘Holy Week Sequence’
About the Author
Paul Sutherland was born in Ontario, Canada, in 1947, and arrived in the UK in 1973. He was the founder of Dream Catcher, an international literary journal, and his own writing has appeared in countless anthologies, newspapers and periodicals. Paul’s eighth collection, Journeying, was first published by Valley Press in 2012, then again with a second edition in 2020. A New and Selected Poems, also from Valley Press, was released in 2017. He has an MA in English Literature from the University of York, and became both a Sufi Muslim and a freelance writer in 2004. He lives with his wife in Lincolnshire.
Vital Statistics
Imprint: Valley Press
Edition: First (November 2017)
Paperback ISBN: 9781908853776
Catalogue number: VP0094
Page count: 384
Trim size: 216x140mm
