Review Continued ... by Fred Johnston
of Adrian Rice's The Mason's Tongue
Sleeping on my own last night,
I was awakened by a bad dream,
So bad that I rose, fled to the bedroom,
Where my wife lay sleeping,
And almost disturbed her
from slumber,
For comfort, such was my fear.
Lately, my night-time reading
Has been Biblical Teaching on the Devil,
By William Still.
I must remember to change
my night-time reading.
But for the most part these poems are infused with a tongue-in-cheek, curiously Northern subtlety of word movement, which, if it hasn't yet reached maturity, is well on its way there. Small, detailed, half-remembered events colour Rice's poetry in what appears to be his first collection, and it is in the restrained richness of observed detail that Rice excels. He is not a lyrical poet, but is nonetheless a poetically robust one. It will be interesting to see how he develops. One way or another, Rice's is a welcome voice in the Ulster choir; there is a diversity and richness about Ulster culture which we ignore or side-line at our overall cultural peril. The cover of this book is a painting by Northern painter Colin Middleton. A footnote: the production and overall design of Rice's book contrast alarmingly with the plain and unadorned early Gallery Press style of Edward Denniston's first Collection, The Point of Singing, also published by Abbey Press. Perhaps, of course, the plainness of design was just what was desired. But, unexplained, such contrasts might give rise to unfair comment. Such are some of the risks a poet-publisher runs. |
