Ballad of a Shropshire Lass
£10.00
Sally Richards gifts us another captivating, pastoral and lyrically charged collection in Ballad of a Shropshire Lass, the title of which might be something of a serendipitous counterpoint to A.E. Housman’s beloved perennial poetry staple A Shropshire Lad in this its 130th anniversary year of publication. There is a palpable seam of compassion running through Richards’ poems, a bardic-druidic wonder at the spirituality of Nature, and a heightened sensitivity and empathy to the anguish, pain and suffering but also hope, promise and resilience, that are all parts of the complex human condition. There is also cadence and music and it’s no small surprise that eight of her poems have been set to music by Chester-based composer Michael D. Williams for The Marches Songbook.
‘Sally Richards is a poet whose feeling for nature extends effortlessly to real and heartfelt feeling for people. She empathises at every level with all that lives and breathes. Despite its incredible hardship, life is worth it. So are Sally Richards’ poems—over and over.’ Susannah Haydn, novelist
‘Meeting Sally Richards has changed my perception of poetry and poets. Sally’s story is inspirational and after our meeting I made myself a promise to read her new book.’
Liz Gray, The Shropshire Star
