num_pages: 64
description: Alice Oswald's first book of poems, The Thing in the Gap-stone Stile is more confident and achieved than many first collections. Previously published in Anvil New Poets 2 , a selection chosen by Carol Ann Duffy, and winner of the 1994 Eric Gregory Award, Oswald already clearly demonstrates adistinct voice. The poems here are extraordinarily intensely musical, strewn with emotion, and full of energy and warmth. Influenced by Gerard Manley Hopkins and George Herbert, they speak passionately of nature and love. They have a religious sense of mystery, and try to express theintangible in marvellously vivid language. The second part of the book features an entertaining long poem titled The Men of Gotham , a comical folk-legend about the three men who went to sea to try to catch the moon in a net. Taken together, this is a wonderful first collection by an exceptionallytalented young poet.
language: English
title: The Thing in the Gap-Stone Stile
titlecomplete: The Thing in the Gap-Stone Stile
genres: Poetry
ratings_count: 172
awards: awardedAt: 820483200000
name: Whitbread Award
category: Poetry
publisher: Oxford University Press