This book will be released in April 2025.
Pre-orders are charged at time of order and the book will be posted to you as soon as it becomes available.
UK postage is 99p per order.
'Tracey Rhys conjures a myriad of voices, from the every woman Bathsheba finding somewhere safe to bathe, to Flood, who fears nothing but jugs, sandbags and isolation. These characters capture the power, chaos and vulnerability within us all. Perhaps the most prevalent voice, however, is Rhys' own – considered and astute as she asks "where is the flow if not inside me?"' – Mari Ellis Dunning
Act-of-God-turned-celebrity diva, Flood likes to make an impression. She wakes up on the wrong side of bed, makes a Severn Bridge of herself, parties with lightning, pouts for the paparazzi and drowns far more than she means to. Explored through the lens of the media and fame, these poems imagine how Mother Nature might respond to humanity’s interference, were she as flawed and determined as humanity itself.
The collection also contains a series of poems that reclaim the Biblical Bathsheba as an everywoman of the ages, creating a collage of female experience in all its sensual complexity. Whether finding herself living on the streets, arriving in the Garden of Eden, giving birth or shopping in Beverley Hills, Bathsheba negotiates the edgy boundaries of her relationships with men while navigating the confines of her body.
Praise for Teaching a Bird to Sing:
‘Moving, funny, true and imbued with a gorgeous lyricism, Tracey Rhys’s poems are the real thing. Highly recommended.’ – Robert Minhinnick
‘a lyrically inventive and unique voice’ – Rhian Edwards
