Twitter. Poetry pods to hatch along the coast. T.S. Eliot Reads: The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock. John Clare, the poet of the environmental crisis – 200 years ago | George Monbiot. The land around Helpston, just to the north of Peterborough in Northamptonshire, now ranks among the most dismal and regularised tracts of countryside in Europe. But when the poet John Clare was born this coming Friday in 1793, it swarmed with life. Clare describes species whose presence there is almost unimaginable today. Corncrakes hid among the crops, ravens nested in a giant oak, nightjars circled the heath, the meadows sparkled with glow worms. Wrynecks still bred in old woodpecker holes. In the woods and brakes the last wildcats clung on. The land was densely peopled.
All this Clare notes in tremulous bewitching detail, in the dialect of his own people. And then he sees it fall apart. Clare documents both the destruction of place and people and the gradual collapse of his own state of mind. What Clare suffered was the fate of indigenous peoples torn from their land and belonging everywhere. Well, its the wettest June I've known! Dark clouds above me. Well, its the wettest June I've known! Thunder heard in the distance. Well,its the wettest June I've known! Rain falling from the sky. Puddles everywhere you walk. Wellies are fashionable again. Umbrella sales are sky high. Too wet to put washing out on the line. Getting wet at the bus stop again. Weather forecast predicting more rain. It can't get wetter than this! Brighton Beach. Feet Undefeated.
Poetics – A French Twist For Quatorze Juillet « dVerse. Little-known (studio) variation of Delacroix’s Liberte Guidant Le Peuple (Liberty Leading the People.) From French kissing to French’s mustard (okay, make that Grey Poupon), things French add a certain je ne sais quoi to our lives, both as people and poets. Manicddaily here (a/k/a Karin Gustafson) and I’m hosting the Pub’s Poetics today in a celebration of Quatorze Juillet, Bastille Day, France’s national holiday. Things French have always had a certain cachet for me—a kind of chic that runs way deeper than Chanel. Even as a tiny girl, I was always trying to put my hair up in a French twist. (I wanted to look like Grace Kelly, but ended up more like Pippy Longstocking.) But France, largely through its cuisine, has also injected itself into world culture in more homey ways. And now, to the prompt! Eh Bien! Here’s the drill for those of you, new to the Pub. Like this: Like Loading... Ways With Words 2012: Helen Dunmore reaches out in words.
Medieval manuscript The Laws of Hywel Dda back from USA sold for £541,250. 10 July 2012Last updated at 10:28 ET It is believed the book was taken to America by Welsh settlers in the 1700s One of the first medieval manuscripts to be written in Welsh has been saved for the nation after being sold at auction for £541,250. It is believed the 14th Century pocket book, called The Laws of Hywel Dda, was taken to America by Welsh settlers in the 1700s.
The buyer was the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth, with support from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF). The book was expected to fetch between £500,000 and £700,000 at Sotheby's. The London auction house said it believed the Boston Manuscript, as it is known, was back in Britain for the first time in at least 150 years. Continue reading the main story Hywel Dda laws Marriage was considered an agreement, not a holy sacrament. It was sold by the Massachusetts Historical Society of Boston. Tenth century Welsh ruler Hywel Dda (Hywel The Good) created the country's first uniform legal system. 'True treasures' Lost work by legendary poet celebrating the Royal Navy unearthed after 60 years. A ‘lost’ work by former Poet Laureate John Masefield has been discovered in the archives of the Royal Naval Association. National President Vice Admiral John McAnally told delegates at the Association’s annual conference in Newcastle that earlier this year a search at RNA headquarters turned up an unexpected item.
"This was a copy of a poem by the famous poet John Masefield, written in 1952 at the request of our national council when he – Masefield – was the Poet Laureate,” said Admiral McAnally. "The poem was published in the programme for our 1952 reunion in the Albert Hall. "This was during the time after the death of King George VI but before the coronation of Her Majesty the Queen, and the wonderful poem speaks of the challenges facing our new Queen and the way in which her sailors would be thoroughly behind her.
"He checked with Masefield’s nephew, who is the trustee of the Masefield estate, and he has been unable to find any other copy in his uncle’s papers. Image Gallery. The 20 Most Beautiful Bookstores in the World. [Editor’s note: In celebration of the holidays, we’re counting down the top 12 Flavorwire features of 2012. This post, at #1, was originally published January 31.] With Amazon slowly taking over the publishing world and bookstores closing left and right, things can sometimes seem a little grim for the brick and mortar booksellers of the world. After all, why would anyone leave the comfort of their couch to buy a book when with just a click of a button, they could have it delivered to their door?
Well, here’s why: bookstores so beautiful they’re worth getting out of the house (or the country) to visit whether you need a new hardcover or not. We can’t overestimate the importance of bookstores — they’re community centers, places to browse and discover, and monuments to literature all at once — so we’ve put together a list of the most beautiful bookstores in the world, from Belgium to Japan to Slovakia. A gorgeous converted Dominican church gives the power of reading its due diligence. Psalm 23 - The Lord is my constant companion.