Tumble

She gripped lightly with her knees, as shed been taught. She didnt want wings. She wanted to fly on the thunder of hooves, feel muscles surging beneath her. The word in her head, matching stride free-ee-dom, free-ee-dom, free-ee-dom as she bent low over the withers, pressing her cheek against the finials neck, her own hair a mane, streaming wild in the wind. From the poem Silks This remarkable second collection by award-winning poet Joanna Preston charts a course for the journey from child to woman. Her bold and original voice swoops the reader from the ocean depths to the roof of the world, from nascent saints, Viking raids and fallen angels to talking cameras and an astronaut in space. Always, the human heartbeat is at stake, as Preston explores love, loss, longing and lust how we stumble, how we soar. tumble is a beautifully crafted collection that traverses traditional forms, the lyric and free verse. It is earthy and embodied, while at the same time woven through with myth and magical realism.