Animal People

Animal People is the new collection by the distinguished poet Carol Rumens. Often inspired by and infused with the weathers of various seasons of the year, a strong sense of place also features in most poems, whether it be the dramatic mountain rock-scapes of Snowdonia or the gritty streets of London. The title poem is a ten-page meditation or symphony in varying movements, on the theme of autism and explores what it is to ?be on the spectrum,’ particularly for a young girl, and what the autistic perspective may mean for individuals and for human destiny. Drawing on personal and family experience, this poem is infused with the author’s characteristic empathy, curiosity and humanity. There is a strong sense of commemoration in this collection, of time passing and of the challenges of mortality, and also a number of brilliant pieces that are influenced by translations or re-readings of classic works of literature.

Carol Rumens was born in Forest Hill, South London. She won a scholarship to grammar school, and later studied Philosophy at London University, but left before completing her degree. She later gained a Postgraduate Diploma in Writing for the Stage from City College Manchester. She has taught at the University of Kent at Canterbury, Queen's University Belfast, University College Cork, University of Stockholm, and the University of Hull; she is currently Visiting Professor in Creative Writing at the University of Bangor. She has held the position of Poetry Editor for the literary newspaper, (the publisher) Quarto, and for the Literary Review, and she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. The author of fifteen collections of poems, as well as occasional fiction, drama and translation, Rumens has received the Cholmondeley Award and the Prudence Farmer Prize for her poetry, and was joint recipient of an Alice Hunt Bartlett Award. Her collection, Star Whisper (1983) was shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Award. She has also published a collection of her lectures on poetry, Self into Song. Her work has appeared regularly in publications such as The Guardian, The Observer and Poetry Review, and she currently writes the hugely popular 'Poem of the Week' feature for The Guardian.