Book of Bones


“Every contact leaves a trace,” said Edmund Locard. Book of Bones examines who we are, our impact and what we leave behind. Rich with imagery, thoughtfulness and levity, Kathy Gee’s poetry is vibrant with people, places and lives connecting across time. From skeletons, scandal and hidden narratives to fathers, friendship and photographs, these are poems of identity, warmth and melancholy. 

Book of Bones is very observant, very vivid.

“Kathy Gee's debut is a cabinet of curiosities, exploring the personal and monumental past. Small artefacts and once-silenced voices are brought to life. Her observing eye takes in figures from King Henry to Goering and all points in between, seeking historical answers to very modern concerns." Jo Bell

“In this entertaining first collection Kathy Gee curates a rich display of historical artefacts, landscapes and personalities that bring the past up close – and personal. The poems, deftly fashioned and imbued with a feisty tenderness, leave traces of wonder, joy, compassion and a wry humour all of which linger pleasurably in the mind.” Stephen Boyce

ISBN 978-0-9926114-4-6
60 pages
RRP £9.99

Buy Book of Bones now:


Book of Bones with P&P

REVIEWS 

“…And just when I was wondering how else to fairly describe the contents I arrived at Traces and relief – to find those ingredients also here. That almost indefinable that skirts around mind’s edges, the not obvious, not quite, but that we know it is there, we know it’s right. Her Provenance  too took me back for a second reading. Also, and probably reflecting my taste for the estranged, Book of Bones  worth getting for Northerner in the South and Orientation –

A map is not the landscape, 
shows the journey, not its ending,
knows the road but cannot tell you
how to find your way.


Life’s a chart of known unknowns
where here-be-dragons curl
and monsters guard the Empty Quarter.

This is nothing new. Don’t worry.
Home is always split
between at least three different maps.
We live beyond the contour lines.”


Sam Smith, The Journal 

Two sample poems from the book can be read below.

Provenance

Somewhere in the swirl of paint
lies moisture captured from his breath,
some slight impression of his gaze,
the weight of hours in a draughty loft.

Collectors breathe the painter’s dust,
observe as women stitch their silks
and sunlight falls on a chequered floor.
They want to own the artist’s essence,
touching atoms, brushing fingers,
seeking to be part of him,
his fame illuminating theirs.

Goering, finding his Vermeer
was fake, was shocked, as if he’d just
discovered there is evil in the world.





Listen to Kathy read Provenance here: 





The unforgotten twin

In the bay window, a wheelchair
turns its back on beds to give
a birthday moment of normality.

How old are you, Olive? says Nurse.
I’m sixty eight the wheelchair says.
Oh bless her, she means eighty six.

And how many children, Olive?
Three adults at her knee await
the answer... give it for her:

three they smile in unison.
Their mother firmly contradicts
No, four... I had four.


Listen to Kathy read The unforgotten twin here:



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