Loss

As the boat limps into harbour,
listing heavily to leeward,
its bowsprit splintered
and mizzen hanging loose,
murmurs rise from the pier
to become a rousing cheer
at a successful homecoming—
not realising the hull
is holed below the waterline,
the dark brine seeping in.

There is a decidedly elegiac quality to this latest collection of Stewart Conn’s poems. But whether writing about his family, day-to-day life, personal love and loss, or his struggles with the sources of his inspiration, in his characteristically precise and often lighthearted way, he tells it as it is.

…quietly powerful meditations on childhood and age, place and identity, love and loss — all rendered in Conn’s signature blend of warmth, wit and emotional clarity. – Kate Hendry

Conn’s muse is a domestic creature: thoughtful, unfussy, unafraid to linger.—James Campbell, selecting Out of the Blue among his choices for TLS book of the year 2025