For Hugh Underhill, poetry is a constant struggle against distortion, a ‘moving or breaking to sight’ of the suppressed or denied and a sharing of delight in ‘bright things’ and in the goodness of the world. It’s also an act of commitment, political and personal, against the world’s disarray. His heroes are Bunyan, Blake, Bloomfield, Edward Thomas and Ivor Gurney.
These poems are rooted in England but qualified by complicated feelings about place and belonging. They are shaped by the belief that a poem should be a made thing, an act of craftsmanship. And they are based upon the Nonconformist belief that living acquires meaning through commitment and choice.
“Meticulously-crafted poems.” — John Lucas
These poems are rooted in England but qualified by complicated feelings about place and belonging. They are shaped by the belief that a poem should be a made thing, an act of craftsmanship. And they are based upon the Nonconformist belief that living acquires meaning through commitment and choice.
“Meticulously-crafted poems.” — John Lucas