Description
Connie Bensley's poems are sharply satirical, often poking fun at social pretence and suburban pretension. They present a comedy of manners in which mismatched characters are bounced between love, death and disappointment. Hers is a seemingly small world but one which spans a whole universe of everyday life. Finding a Leg to Stand On is a retrospective selection of her delightfully pointed poems drawn from six collections published over three decades, plus new work.
About the Author
Connie Bensley was born in south-west London in 1929, and has always lived there, apart from wartime evacuation. Until her retirement she worked as a secretary to doctors and to an M.P. and as a medical copywriter. Her latest book from Bloodaxe is Having a Leg to Stand On: New & Selected Poems (2012), which presents new work with poems drawn from six previous collections: Progress Report and Moving In, originally published by Peterloo Poets, and four later books published Bloodaxe: Central Reservations (1990), Choosing To Be a Swan (1994), The Back & the Front of It (2000) and Private Pleasures (2007). Her poems are frequently anthologised and read on BBC radio.
Reviews
'Connie Bensley's poems are not only funny but truthful. This is the world viewed from London SW13: but hope, betrayal, love, self-delusion, moments of happiness characterise life lived in the suburbs just as much as anywhere else' - Harry Eyres, Express on Sunday. 'Someone who can write with panache about the insouciant pleasure given by a new bra and the coital habits of camels is worth reading' - Helen Dunmore, Poetry Review. 'If Alan Ayckbourn wrote poetry instead of plays, he would sound something like Connie Bensley - like Ayckbourn she has the comic's knack of placing a lot of weight on thin-shouldered words, words blurred by common currency which are suddenly brought into sharp focus and don't really want to be. Beyond the laughs there's great poignancy' - Adam Thorpe, Observer.
Book Information
ISBN 9781852249564
Author Connie Bensley
Format Paperback
Page Count 224
Imprint Bloodaxe Books Ltd
Publisher Bloodaxe Books Ltd
Dimensions(mm) 216mm * 138mm * 16mm
About the Author
Connie Bensley was born in south-west London in 1929, and has always lived there, apart from wartime evacuation. Until her retirement she worked as a secretary to doctors and to an M.P. and as a medical copywriter. Her latest book from Bloodaxe is Having a Leg to Stand On: New & Selected Poems (2012), which presents new work with poems drawn from six previous collections: Progress Report and Moving In, originally published by Peterloo Poets, and four later books published Bloodaxe: Central Reservations (1990), Choosing To Be a Swan (1994), The Back & the Front of It (2000) and Private Pleasures (2007). Her poems are frequently anthologised and read on BBC radio.
Reviews
'Connie Bensley's poems are not only funny but truthful. This is the world viewed from London SW13: but hope, betrayal, love, self-delusion, moments of happiness characterise life lived in the suburbs just as much as anywhere else' - Harry Eyres, Express on Sunday. 'Someone who can write with panache about the insouciant pleasure given by a new bra and the coital habits of camels is worth reading' - Helen Dunmore, Poetry Review. 'If Alan Ayckbourn wrote poetry instead of plays, he would sound something like Connie Bensley - like Ayckbourn she has the comic's knack of placing a lot of weight on thin-shouldered words, words blurred by common currency which are suddenly brought into sharp focus and don't really want to be. Beyond the laughs there's great poignancy' - Adam Thorpe, Observer.
Book Information
ISBN 9781852249564
Author Connie Bensley
Format Paperback
Page Count 224
Imprint Bloodaxe Books Ltd
Publisher Bloodaxe Books Ltd
Dimensions(mm) 216mm * 138mm * 16mm
