Nocturnes by Will Kemp

Nocturnes

This accomplished debut collection explores a fascination with the night. From taking the dog out to revisiting Sleeping Beauty, from night snow to night music and from night as loss and grief to the end of the world, the poems in this collection are united not only by a strong through line, but by a lyrical sensibility that knows exactly what not to say as well as what to include. The language is honed and lucid and Kemp has a gift for the mot juste. Despite the darkness and moments of poignancy, the light is never far beneath the surface and what emerges is a sense of the darkness as a place of recuperation moving towards the light. Similarly the sombre is more than amply balanced by flashes of intelligent wit and an inventive humour that makes this an engaging and satisfying debut.

Will Kemp studied at Cambridge and UEA then worked as an environmental planner in Canada, Holland and New Zealand.  His poems have been published widely in journals and highly placed in competitions.  In 2010 he won the Envoi International Poetry Prize and the Cinnamon Poetry Collection Award.