Say Something Back
19 May 2016
Imprint: Picador
Synopsis
Say Something Back will allow readers to see just why the name of Denise Riley has been held in such high regard by her fellow poets for so long. The book reproduces A Part Song, a profoundly moving document of grieving and loss, and one of the most widely admired long poems of recent years. Elsewhere these poems become a...
Details
19 May 2016
96 pages
9781447270379
Imprint: Picador
Reviews
It sometimes seems that contemporary poetry divides into two sorts - those poems that did not need to be written and those written out of necessity. Denise Riley belongs to the second category - her writing is perfectly weighted, justifies its existence. It is impossible not to want to "say something back" to each of her poems in recognition of their outstanding quality. Her voice is strong and beautiful - an imperative in itself . . . remarkableGuardian
The best thing I've read in agesMax Porter, author of Grief Is the Thing with Feathers
Denise Riley’s Say Something Back shows how grief keeps a different clock and is a churning yet exhilarating (because the poems are so good) exploration of loss. Her poetry gets to the heartJackie Kay, Guardian
I have been a fan of Denise Riley’s for decades, and Say Something Back shows her working at her peak in a collection that is as rewarding as it is challengingJohn Burnside, Herald