The Deadwing Generation – Simon French (published 17th April 2022)
The Deadwing Generation is a second stand-out collection from Simon French. Perceptive and emotionally raw, French applies his poetry scalpel to the experience of living life in the modern world.
Praise from a Waterstones.com reader:
“There are writers who write poetry and there are poets who write poetry. Simon French is one of the latter. This is his second collection and it’s just as inventive as his debut (Joyriding Down Utopia Avenue). However, this is a darker affair, more serious in tone although still having the musicality of language that French is so expert in creating. Still quintessentially English. He is a wizard with words, conjuring amazing images out of the everyday. The poems are spare, distilled, intense. Many have exposed nerve endings. He taps into the zeitgeist. Holds a mirror up to the world we live in, then manipulates the reflection into something almost otherworldly. But none of this is pretentious or condescendingly intellectual. French is a communicator and has respect for the reader. And there are moments of subtle humour – ‘Kama Sutra for the Canal Age’, ‘Routefinder’ – being two such examples. A few poems deal with his mother and her subsequent death but these are never maudlin or depressing. In fact, the final poem in the book ‘A Kingfisher for the Quiet One’ is positively uplifting – about coming to terms with his mother’s death and moving on. Some poems are mysterious, others almost stream of consciousness where you can only be thrilled in wonder as to where the poem is taking you. This is a great book well worth purchasing.”
Praise for French’s Joyriding Down Utopia Avenue from Amazon readers:
“Powerful, surprising – shocking, sometimes funny, often poignant but always thought provoking.”
“surprising, subtle poetry”
“This is a stunning collection. Assured throughout, this is a poet who is a master of his game. The poems conjure a vividly imagined world, often skewering convention.”
Coverstory Books - Ian Gouge, Publisher 
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