Caroline Smith (Seren)

Poetry and immigration may not be topics you’d usually associate with each other, but Caroline Smith, an asylum caseworker, shines a light on the world of bureaucracy and escapism through a collection of poetry. Smith’s verse includes quotes from real immigration laws and letters to real asylum seekers and illegal immigrants. This sense of realism brings the art to new depths as the reader realises these poems are about real events, and real people who are fighting the struggle of escaping hard lives along with the confusion of their legal situation. Poems like I.S 96 attempt to recreate an atmosphere of loss, along with an understanding of life’s pulling forces, whereas poems such as Father show how these legal forms can create massive tensions and shocks to family life. The interesting mix of reality and beauty brings a new direction for talking about immigration.

words MONICA MARTIN

Price: £9.99 Info: www.serenbooks.com