Polkadot Wounds
Shortlisted for The Jhalak Prize 2022
Poetry Book Society Choice 2021
Longlisted for The BOCAS Prize for Caribbean Literature 2020
"Polkadot Wounds" is full of the jumbled delight, frustration, restlessness and continuity of trying to live a connected and creative human life in our times. Capildeo's poetry flourishes as part of a conversation with other writers (dead and living) and other people. Here, travelling widely and working on commissions produces glimpsing reflections of events and encounters.
The title of the book is drawn from a phrase in the opening poem, commissioned by the Charles Causley Trust, and inspired by the stones of the ruined Norman castle in Launceston, Cornwall, as well as by the wounds depicted in the honey-coloured wood statue of the local martyr, St Cuthbert Mayne. "Polkadot Wounds" is in three sections. The first thinks with and through landscapes, using the earlier spelling 'landskips' to invoke traditions of English-language travel writing, and the playful idea of skipping. The second section plays off Dante's Divine Comedy. Dreams, grief, and the occasional breakthrough of joy appear as if in the corner of the eye; other scenes play out in more pointilliste fashion. This section is inflected by untimely deaths, during the pandemic and in queer and overseas communities. The third section gets a grip on transformations of self.
Poetry Book Society Choice 2021
Longlisted for The BOCAS Prize for Caribbean Literature 2020
"Polkadot Wounds" is full of the jumbled delight, frustration, restlessness and continuity of trying to live a connected and creative human life in our times. Capildeo's poetry flourishes as part of a conversation with other writers (dead and living) and other people. Here, travelling widely and working on commissions produces glimpsing reflections of events and encounters.
The title of the book is drawn from a phrase in the opening poem, commissioned by the Charles Causley Trust, and inspired by the stones of the ruined Norman castle in Launceston, Cornwall, as well as by the wounds depicted in the honey-coloured wood statue of the local martyr, St Cuthbert Mayne. "Polkadot Wounds" is in three sections. The first thinks with and through landscapes, using the earlier spelling 'landskips' to invoke traditions of English-language travel writing, and the playful idea of skipping. The second section plays off Dante's Divine Comedy. Dreams, grief, and the occasional breakthrough of joy appear as if in the corner of the eye; other scenes play out in more pointilliste fashion. This section is inflected by untimely deaths, during the pandemic and in queer and overseas communities. The third section gets a grip on transformations of self.
About the author
Anthony (Vahni) Capildeo FRSL is a Trinidadian Scottish writer of poetry and non-fiction. They are currently Professor and Writer in Residence at the University of York. Their work has been recognized with the Cholmondeley Award (Society of Authors) and the Forward Poetry Prize for Best Collection. Their publications include "Like a Tree, Walking" (Carcanet, 2021) (Poetry Book Society Choice), and "A Happiness" (Intergraphia, 2022).