SOUL OF THE EARTH

a Spoken Word Performance Showcase

'All real poetry seeks to 'renew the face of the earth' - and so to resist the exploiting,

banalization or defacing of what lies around us. I hope this collection will serve the

renewal of vision we so badly need'. Dr Rowan Williams

'..these poets are mapping the journey of change, recovery and re-discovery which offers us all a vision of a possible future.' Martin Palmer, ARC (Alliance of Religions and Conservation)

‘I’ve been to a lot of storytelling up and down the country, and this is as good as it gets.’

Professor Ronald Hutton, author/historian

'Last night was excellent' Lindsay Clarke, award-winning novelist

Soul of the Earth launch, World Poetry Day, Waterstones, Bath, 21 March 2011

SOUL OF THE EARTH PERFORMANCE EVENTS

Having published over thirty titles since 2003, Awen has focused its aesthetic and ethical stance in a new anthology of eco-spiritual poetry, Soul of the Earth, edited by Jay Ramsay.

We can offer an evening of inspiring, challenging and uplifting poetry from some of the key UK-based contributors to the book, with storytelling and music, as a dynamic contribution to your festival.

All the performers are successful and experienced, and the live accompanying music they work with creates a memorable atmosphere – something audiences have responded to already in Hampstead, Kings Cross, Glastonbury, Frome, Bath and Bristol.

Poets include Jay Ramsay (who founded Angels of Fire and its festivals of New Poetry in the 1980s in London), award-winning poet Rose Flint, Kings Cross laureate Aidan Andrew Dun, Adam Horovitz, and ecopoet Helen Moore. Kevan Manwaring, Anthony Nanson and singer-songwriter David Metcalfe are also co-founders of Fire Springs storytelling company. Musicians include Herewood Gabriel (djembe, flute, ballaphon), Czech pianist Lucie Rechjtova, and John Gibbens and Armorel Weston of the London-based band The Children.

The line up can always vary from a mini-Festival evening to 2 or 3 of us according to your resources of space and time. We see each Soul of the Earth event as a unique occasion, and we are happy to work outside as well as indoors.

Would you like to include a Soul of the Earth event in your festival? Please let us know; we’d be delighted to talk to you and discuss possibilities. For more information, audio recordings or promotional copy of Soul of the Earth contact us.

Contacts:

Jay Ramsay: 07752 719331

email: jayramsay@o2.co.uk

Kevan Manwaring: 07853 568 517

THE BOOK:

SOUL OF THE EARTH

the Awen anthology of Eco-spiritual Poetry

Edited by Jay Ramsay

Afterword by Anthony Nanson

21 Poets, 1 Planet...

Soul of the Earth is an anthology of poetry to inspire hope in humanity. Beautifully crafted, yet challenging received wisdom and pushing boundaries, these are cutting-edge poems from a new generation of writers who share a love of the Earth and haven't given up on humans either. In poems as light as a butterfly and as wild as a storm, you'll discover ivid, contemporary voices that dare to explore a spiritual dimension to life on Earth and, in doing so, imply that a way out of our global crisis of ecological breakdown, financial meltdown, and bankruptcy of the spirit is to look beyond the impasse of materialism. With contributions from poets in the USA, Canada, UK, New Zealand and Australia, this anthology reaches out across the planet to embrace the challenges and blessings of being alive on the Earth in the twenty-first century.

164pp, RRP £11.99  ISBN 978-1-906900-17-5