Welcome back to The Book Bag. I hope you’ve had a poetic week.
Well it’s good to be back after a good Christmas break where I’ve slowed down a little. Over the past couple of weeks I’ve hosted Write Here, Right Now, hosted another instalment of The Book Bag Open Mic Sessions, attended a Black Bough poetry bootcamp for planning how I’ll make the most of the year to come.
I’ve also been lucky enough to be welcomed by Matthew MC Smith to be a guest sub-editor for Black Bough’s Christmas / Winter Anthology . Last weekend I attended a workshop facilitated by the excellent Vanessa Napolitano, then on Sunday (pre open mic) I read at a Winged Moon launch event.
Due to the weather, the allotment progress has been a little slow, but the ground is thawing and the plot is just about ready for spring planting. We did get the start of a climbing bean arch in last week.
On top of that, I’ve been reading;
Songs From Last Imaginations
- Poet: Dorian Nightingale
- Press: Flight of the Dragonfly Press
I’ve been following Dorian’s work for a while now and was over the moon when he announced his book was coming out with Flight of the Dragonfly. Songs from Last Imaginations is a pamphlet of poetry and terrifically curated photography.
Dorian’s major strength is his sound patterning built on a base of incredibly lyrical and melodic language. Poems including ‘One’, ‘Narcissus’ and ‘Sparks’ (one of my favourites) are all prime examples of this using sibilance, alliteration, variations on rhyme. Also, I’ll drop a special mention for ‘Clair de Lune’ as being a gem of a poem (this is the first piece of music I learnt on the saxophone).
There is a vibrancy in the imagery of this collection. ‘A Day At The Beach’ is energetic with quick rhyme in the opening, pulling to a slower pace by the closing line. ‘Deep Blue Day’ is a slower paced piece from the start but maintains attention due to rich, vivid language.
The pamphlet does not shy away from complex emotions. ‘Round and Around’ is an accomplished piece using the spin of a vinyl record as metaphor for waiting and longing incredibly well. ‘In Bloom’ is a great poem on resilience and creates a distinct engaging tone.
Form and style are played with throughout. White space is used to its maximum in the poem ‘Nobody Home’ and in ‘Airlock’ the slash method of line breaks is used to break up the text. The language contained within the pamphlet is incredibly considered and rich. ‘Reverie’ and ‘Reckoner’ are both exemplary in demonstrating this.
The photography included in the book has been carefully considered, adding visual beauty through simple, unfussy images. I’ll also mention the musical scales included in the pamphlet that tie into the theme and ambition of this book.
This book will be a hit with readers of lyrical poetry who appreciate immersive scenery and emotive pieces. These are poems to read aloud and have fun with, test your cadence and style reading speed and style for each one several times and see how they can alter. A wonderful pamphlet to kick off 2026.
Favourite Poem:
There’s a few pieces in this pamphlet. I’ve mentioned ‘Sparks’ already so I’ll add ‘Swan Song’, ‘You’, ‘Spellbound’, ‘The Final Cut’ and ‘Little Wing’.
You can find more on Dorian, here.
Dorian’s pamphlet can be bought here.
And for the first playlist of the year, here’s an eclectic mix to go with Dorian’s exceptional book based on my interpretation and some of Dorian’s musical inspiration (listed in the acknowledgements).
Bob Dylan – Visions of Johanna
Bruce Springsteen – The River
Röyksopp – Eple
David Bowie – Wild is the Wind
Portishead – Roads
U2 – The Sweetest Thing
Phoebe Bridgers – I Know the End
Elton John – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Duke Ellington – Sophisticated Lady
Led Zeppelin – Good Times Bad Times
Claude Debussy – Clair de Lune
Before I Go…
It seems The Book Bag Open Mic Sessions are proving popular. Tickets for session 3, taking place on Sunday 8th March 2026 at 7pm, are now on sale and can be bought here. Spaces are limited. Don’t want to read? You can enjoy as an audience member for free.
One More Thing…
You may remember I signed on to assist the team at Frazzled Lit for the fourth issue. Well it’s out in the world and can be read here. It was an honour to be asked and read some excellent writing.
And Another…
The submission window for Black Bough’s Christmas / Winter Anthology 7 opens on 28th January and runs until 1st February. Full details can be found here. Read the guidelines and send your very best work to appear in an always excellent anthology.
And Finally…
I’d love to know what poetry books you got for Christmas. Did you get any from The Christmas Gift List? Is there a title I should be featuring on The Book Bag? Drop me a message in the comments.
Next Week’s Read
- Title: Circulaire
- Poet: Bex Hainsworth
Take it easy and stay poetic, I’ll catch you next week.
Paul
Paul Writes Poems 