A prolific, relentlessly inventive, provocative and often hilarious
poet, Peter Finch has published over twenty volumes of verse, as well as
prose, including the popular alternative guide books, Real Cardiff and
Real Cardiff 2. This selection follows his popular Selected Poems
(1987) with a choice of work from books published in the past twenty
years.
"Since the early 1970s, Finch has been the principal innovator in Welsh
poetry... he deserves a Welsh knighthood."
Richard Kostelanetz, Dictionary of the Avant-Gardes
"Put this by your bed and it could keep you awake for hours: noisy,
diverting - though not, perhaps, sufficiently selected. The cover photo
captures Finch, who is well known for his declamatory poetry readings,
fizzing with energy."
Poetry Review
"I'm convinced that Finch is one of the most exciting poets writing
today on these islands, pushing the idea of poetry out as far as it will
go, stretching the elastic band to snapping point and beyond, far
beyond. Finch is so good because of his constant need to create and
recreate, and his refusal to accept barriers. We need more poets like
him."
Ian McMillan
Peter Finch is a poet, author and critic who lives in Cardiff. His
numerous poetry titles include Useful, Poems for Ghosts and Food
from Seren, Antibodies from Stride, and Vizet, a selected poems in
Hungarian from Kronkét Könyvek. A former publisher and bookseller, he is
now Chief Executive of the Welsh Academy, the Welsh Literature Promotion
Agency and Society of Writers.
