New poetry for April: oily black birds, hearts & innards, jazz standards
Mab Jones has come back for more of the best new poetry released this April, from the venerable David Harsent to a Welsh contingent in Elizabeth Parker and Taz Rahman.
Books
Whether it's paperback, hardback or audio, we’ve got it covered when it comes to all the best new writers, authors and book releases.
One hell of a debut: ENGLAND IS MINE wades through a dehumanising modern Britain
England Is Mine is an extraordinary debut novel that's as addictive as the subreddits, blogs and Discord chats we read through the minds of the protagonists.
A CASUAL LIFE IN SIX T-SHIRTS: a unique musical memoir from Euron Griffith
The story of Euron Griffith's A Casual Life In Six T-shirts book serves as a motif for a north Wales upbringing that made his teenage music fandom a challenge.
Pleasure, pain, power: ALL THE RAGE collects stories from the frontline of 100 years of beauty
Spanning 100 years of history, from 1860 to 1960, All The Rage is a fascinating insight into how fashion and beauty has shaped the lives of women.
A dystopian tale of hope: Téa Obreht’s THE MORNINGSIDE
Téa Obreht’s characters find hope in The Morningside's dystopian setting; there can hardly be a more pertinent subject for modern readers.
ME AND MR JONES: Suzi Ronson remembers life in BOWIE’s 70s orbit
In memoir Me and Mr Jones, Suzi Ronson is an amiable narrator who gained entry into Bowie’s orbit in the 70s whilst working as a hairdresser.
Mind-bending cunning: Stuart Turton does it again with THE LAST MURDER AT THE END OF THE WORLD
Author Stuart Turton is back with another novel of mind-bending cunning: The Last Murder At The End Of The World.
CLOSE TO DEATH: ANTHONY HOROWITZ’s meta murder mystery
Just when you feared novelty in murder mysteries was as dead, along comes Anthony Horowitz with an invigoratingly meta take on the genre.
Annie Ernaux examines complexities of mother-daughter relationships in A WOMAN’S STORY
Annie Ernaux is a master of the form in A Woman's Story, the French 1988 book that's finally recieved an English translation.
WHERE THE SAINTS CAME FROM: embark on a pilgrimage of Christian history in Wales
A story of the Christian faith in Wales, Where The Saints Came From sets out to discover how the religion has developed from its arrival here in late-Roman times.
THE CHAIN: infuriating, uncomfortable yet vitally important at exposing misogyny
An infuriating, uncomfortable yet vitally important read, The Chain speaks to the ultimate triumph of sisterhood over sexism.
Roxy Dunn’s witty, literary debut AS YOUNG AS THIS chronicles the anxieties of youthful dating
Roxy Dunn’s debut As Young As This takes us through the life of Margot, a young woman who, like many of us, wanted nothing more than to fall in love as a teen.
1000 TUDOR PEOPLE shines a light into Tudor lives – big and small
A beautifully presented, colourful and accessibly written tome, 1000 Tudor People aims to deliver a broad insight into life during the Tudor period.
THE BLUES BROTHERS: a must-have history of the raucous cult classic
Daniel De Visé’ pieces together the definitive telling of the making of The Blues Brothers, a hit movie on release 44 years ago and a cult favourite since.
Dive into the hidden waters of ancient worlds with SUNKEN LANDS
Sunken Lands is a tale of time and water, an exploration of how the past, present, and future are not linear but an uproarious ocean of shared experience.
STRANGE THINGS ARE HAPPENING: countercultural lodestone Richard Norris on music
As Strange Things Are Happening makes clear, Richard Norris might not be a household musical name, but's he's still a countercultural lodestone.
Reckoning of the soul: Lucy Sante recounts late-in-life gender transition in I HEARD HER CALL MY NAME
I Heard Her Call My Name talks, with honesty and lack of self-pity, about Lucy Sante’s internal struggle and her difficulties with transitioning late in life.
TIR: Carwyn Graves’ ecological odyssey through Wales’ varied landscapes
Situating itself in Wales' grand and varied landscapes, with Tir, Carwyn Graves lays out the ecology and history of this country by exploring each layer.
New poetry for March: gods of the pond, slapping udders, Michael McIntyre’s net worth
Mab Jones compiles the best new poetry this March: from vital contemporary voices on the scene, their verse ranging from the devastating to the evocative to the faintly absurd.
Popular poet Hollie McNish is your wittiest best friend in new collection, LOBSTER
Lobster, the newest collection by the highly prolific author and poet Hollie McNish feels honest, fresh and like a conversation with your wittiest friend.
THE UNDERGROUND SEA: a profound tribute to working-class struggles from John Berger
The Underground Sea collects rarely-seen work by John Berger on the topic of coal mining, evidently with the 40th anniversary of the strike in mind.
THE LANGUAGE PUZZLE is a page-turning dive into the mysteries of human communication
The Language Puzzle offers both fact and theory in a quest to uncover the backstory on one of human’s oldest traits.
Kerry Andrew’s WE ARE TOGETHER BECAUSE: a gripping tale of family & apocalypse
We Are Together Because is a frightening read with unforgettable characters – forced to explore their true colours in the end days.
ASSIMILATION: Sophie Buchaillard’s poignant account of migration & what it means to belong
In laying down roots in Wales, the novel Assimilation offers a unique take on dual identity, divided into segments that capture the fragmentation of being.