Regeneration is Welsh poet Meirion Jordan’s take on the medieval manuscripts known today as the Red Book of Hergest and the White Book of Rhydderch.
The collection is a full-bore re-imagining, inspired by the stories of the Mabinogi as well as Malory’s version of King Arthur’s tales. Drawing on these ‘half-recalled heroic landscapes’, Jordan captures the elusive essence of the characters, their strange adventures and mysterious passions.
The book’s inventive format – both sections presented ‘back to back’, with separate covers – echoes the division of the original manuscript into ‘Red’ and ‘White’ books.
Meirion Jordan was born near Swansea. His first collection of poems, Moonrise (Seren, 2008), was shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection, and his pamphlet, Strangers Hall (Gatehouse Press, 2009), was shortlisted for an East Anglia Book of the Year award. His poems have appeared widely in national poetry magazines, including PN Review, Poetry Wales, the Rialto, Agenda and the TLS.