Helen Moore’s third major collection of poems, The Mother Country, is published by Awen on 1 May 2019. Helen is a poet of passion, power, and precision. She writes with a commitment to the world – the ecological, the political, the spiritual – which fits perfectly with Awen’s vision. She has also garnered a considerable reputation in the literary world, having published many poems in top-notch periodicals and performed at major festivals and conferences.
In Helen’s case, the UK’s loss is Australia’s gain: she has just moved to Sydney with her Australian-born husband. The first section of The Mother Country, about Australia, reflects this present trajectory in her life. However, Helen will be back to launch the book with a whole tour of events through May, June, and July. I’ll give you the dates below, but first some information from the back cover of the book:
Under English law a parent still has the right to disinherit their offspring. This book is a poet’s response to being written out of her mother’s will. Exploring dispossession in a range of forms – from colonial legacies in Scotland and Australia to contemporary impacts of industrial civilisation on human health, planetary systems, and our children’s future – The Mother Country is simultaneously a journey through sorrow, a quest for poetic justice, and a movement towards forgiveness and ecological restoration.
‘She makes us see, hear and experience not only the grief of things across the planet but also the memories of the damaged and vanished worlds from which it rises … Perhaps in these perilous transitional times we are all disinherited now, and Moore’s poems perform an important duty by making us feel the pathos and the righteous rage of that condition.’ Lindsay Clarke
‘I love the vastness of Helen Moore’s vision and the unflinching way she puts it into the world … But Moore’s Blakean vision, tackling the toxic tyrannies of our own times, is always tempered by minute details which convey her deep love for what is under threat.’ Rosie Jackson
‘In these verbally dextrous, deeply rooted poems, Helen Moore demonstrates the truth of her quotation from Blake: “A tear is an intellectual thing.” … If our world is to awaken to its own danger, it will need ecopoets such as Moore.’ D.M. Black
TOUR DATES
Wednesday 8 May
The Satellite of Love, The Greenbank, Bristol
8.30pm Regular night at the Greenbank, Easton, Bristol for poetry, spoken word and beyond. Tonight launching ecopoet Helen Moore’s new book The Mother Country, alongside Callum Wensley, Bristol poet and spoken word artist, with open mic.
Monday 13 May
Frome Poetry Cafe
7.30pm Launch of Helen Moore’s new collection of poetry, The Mother Country.
31 May to 2 June
‘Nature, Ecology and Place’, Hawkwood College, Stroud
Creative writing retreat facilitated by Helen Moore.
Thursday 6 June
Lyrical, Trowbridge Town Hall 6pm. Our aim is to blend the Open Mic + guest poet format with conversation and also expand the slot to include talks, book launches and workshops. This month’s guest is ecopoet Helen Moore reading from her new collection, The Mother Country.
Wednesday 12 June
Lighthouse Books, Edinburgh
7pm. Book launch: The Mother Country.
14–16 June
Helen will be and reading from The Mother Country on Saturday 15 June from 8pm.
Tuesday 25 June
October Books, Southampton,
7pm. Book launch: The Mother Country. Book your free ticket via Eventbrite here.
Thursday 27 June
Words & Ears, Bradford-on-Avon
7.30pm. Helen Moore will be reading from her new collection, The Mother Country.
Thursday 4 July
Transition Town Forres, Forres, Moray
7.30pm. Double book launch with Geoff King, author of dystopian novel, Nutters, at Entry by donation.
11–14 July
‘Writing the Land, Writing the Sea’
Helen is facilitating this creative writing holiday for the HighlandLIT, Cromarty, Scotland. Details here.
Thursday 18 July
7pm. paper / needle / rock: Three Poets. Helen is reading with Naomi Foyle and Akila Richards, plus open mic.
Friday 19 July
Bermondsey Project Space, London
6pm. Writing workshop and reading at Marian Bruce’s solo show.