Poetry can be a daunting medium. I left school early, and so, even as I made my way as a performance poet, I encountered most published poetry as mysterious word-craft.
For those who have felt similarly, Padraig O’Tuama’s Poetry Unbound is a generous invitation into the form. Spanning fifty poets and poems from different backgrounds and countries, the collection offers, in Padraig’s words, ‘little doors to open up the world of a reader’. Each poem is accompanied by a short essay exploring the literary craftsmanship, alongside Padraig’s personal reflections. In unravelling these poems, Padraig unravels his own life, inviting readers into an intimacy with both.
Poetry Unbound is a meditation on the textures of life, and on love of all shapes and shadows. There are short, sharp poems that land like a punch, poems long and languid as Sunday mornings. I read these poems aloud to myself and to friends. As I do, each poem moves through me like light through a crystal, refracting new meanings and illuminating neglected parts. On dark days when the world feels uncertain, these poems remind me that I am not the first to experience challenge and change, and through this kinship, they offer a balm.
Purchase your copy here: Poetry Unbound by Padraig O’Tuama
Kelly Lee Hickey is an award winning poet, philosopher and artist. https://echolocation.com.au/
