photo byRobert Doisneau

 

 

 
 
    home
 

Sonic White Poise

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

Published by Dedalus Press, Dublin. March 2021.

Purchase a signed copy, with postage, to anywhere in the world.

€15




Also orderable through great independent bookstores across the planet.

Order from Amazon Canada here
Order from Amazon USA here
Order from Amazon UK here


"…delightful, wry observations, all determinedly involving our every sense. Cotter is a story teller and a crafter of allegories. It’s clever stuff, a joy to read aloud, rhythmic, melodious…Cotter has the knack of making you care for his eccentric characters, feel their pain and dilemmas, hope for a gentle outcome."

Melissa Todd, Confluence.



"Sonic white poise. Patrick Cotter’s third full collection. Is a book of real substance by an established poet in full flow. This is an insightful, intriguing, sometimes funny report on the world. … One of the more satisfying aspects of Sonic White Poise is in the formal control exerted by Cotter throughout. Some of these poems, in their discursive manner, reminded me of the best of Ciaran Carson’s work, the longer-than-usual lines, the thought process that is followed wherever it may go. ... The language does the work and the poems are intelligent and captivating, and deserve, require, and reward close reading."

-Richard Hayes, Poetry Ireland Review

"extremely impressive technique….The imaginative range in this collection is impressive….It would be difficult to find an enjambment or stanza-break out of place in Sonic White Poise, or to fault the perfect pacing in so many poems…..he has crafted an arresting collection with many qualities…"

-Tim Murphy, Dublin Review of Books



Advance praise for Sonic White Poise

Patrick Cotter is a force of nature. There is simply no other way to describe the comedy, the wisdom, the eloquence and light touch of his work. One thing for sure: this poet is not boring. This poet won't leave you guessing at what exactly he meant to say. This poet is willing to be vulnerable, he is willing to speak of this precise moment in time, yet it is his passion that survives this moment, it is his syntax that woos us in. Yes, you will get here that uncompromising, direct, playful tone--but it will also be the tone that will speak of our ruined economies, our regrets, our lost lives, and also our delight, our surprise. Here you will get portraits of real humans, of a man who abandoned his lover to go wonder in the cemetery, of a man who slept in the cowshed leant on the cattle for warmth. And, don't neglect to meet the returned conscript who danced with his mother. Ah forget about humans! Look at the dogs in this book! You will be astonished by the dog that knows Morse code. You will be surprised by a dog that who barks out the word "smellualize." You will also discover another dog "who read books" and finds there's "nowhere / in his brain for the words to go. / As they streamed in through his eyes, line / by line they re-emerged through each // fibre in his fur with a yelp." Soon you realize, of course, that all these dogs are one dog, one soul, one voice, one self-portrait of a poet Patrick Cotter. Are you convinced yet? There is life in these pages--life that is both real and miraculous, life that teaches us the wisdom. Wisdom of what, you might ask. That "before the revolution it is time to play guitar in a park." Indeed. I love this book.

--Ilya Kaminsky, author of Deaf Republic and Dancing In Odessa


Press

Article in Irish Times on the titling of Sonic White Poise.

Review by Mat Riches in the High Window of Sonic White Poise

A notice by Martina Evans in the Irish Times of Sonic White Poise

Review by Melissa Todd in Confluence of Sonic White Poise

Review by Tim Murphy in the Dublin Review of Books

Behind the Poem - a sort of artist's statement on the Poetry Society's Website


Podcasts

Close Talking: A Poetry Podcast features the poem 'Time Traveller'

The Poetry Programme RTE features an interview concerning the book.

Words Lightly Spoken a reading of the poem 'The Discoveries of Thomas Fynch'  


Poems from the Book Online


At The Butcher's in The London Review of Books

Time Traveller in Poetry

Time Traveller adapted as a choral work by Jake Cozza

Oisin in Poetry Ireland Review

The Discoveries of Thomas Fynch in The Awl

O'Sullivan in Poetry Review

Dog Morse (once called 'Homeland Security') in the Cortland Review