Eye of the Hare
| New collection of poems "Eye of the Hare" by John F Deane to be published by Carcanet June 2011 |
Eye of the Hare
There! amongst lean-to grasses and trailing vetch
catch her? – vagrant, free-range and alert;
I saw the eager watch-tower of the ears, I knew
the power of legs that would fling her into flight;
concentrate, he said, and focus: you must love
the soft-flesh shoulder-muscles where the bullet bites,
caress – and do not jerk – the trigger: be all-embracing,
be
delicate. I had no difficulty with the saucepan lid
down at the end of the meadow, lifted, for practice,
against the rhododendron hedge, I could sight
its smug self-satisfaction and shoot a hole
pea-perfect and clean through. Attention to the hare
left me perplexed for I, too, relish the vision
I imaged in its round dark eye, of a green world
easy under sunlight, of sweet sorrel and sacred herbs –
and I turned away, embarrassed, and absolved.
There! amongst lean-to grasses and trailing vetch
catch her? – vagrant, free-range and alert;
I saw the eager watch-tower of the ears, I knew
the power of legs that would fling her into flight;
concentrate, he said, and focus: you must love
the soft-flesh shoulder-muscles where the bullet bites,
caress – and do not jerk – the trigger: be all-embracing,
be
delicate. I had no difficulty with the saucepan lid
down at the end of the meadow, lifted, for practice,
against the rhododendron hedge, I could sight
its smug self-satisfaction and shoot a hole
pea-perfect and clean through. Attention to the hare
left me perplexed for I, too, relish the vision
I imaged in its round dark eye, of a green world
easy under sunlight, of sweet sorrel and sacred herbs –
and I turned away, embarrassed, and absolved.
Eye of the Hare affirms a spirituality
for healing a shattered world. In a
richly textured collection, layered
with Biblical echoes and the music
of the Psalms, John F. Deane
explores the possibilities of poetry
to redress the failures of care
towards the planet and the needs
of society. Deane revives the
language of sacrament and
celebration with raw and tender
grace; in sonnets, narratives and
lyrics Eye of the Hare advances
towards redemption. In the book's
final section, Deane honours the
places and landscapes of Achill,
that beautiful, demanding island
off the west coast of Ireland.
No other contemporary Irish poet,
and few Irish writers, have mastered
the art of eloquent, impassioned
expression as artistic statement as
beautifully as John F. Deane. This is
a major European writer of
conscience. . . Irish Times
I read and re-read the music of John
Deane: a fine poet for our lives'
divided seasons. Alison
Brackenbury, Poetry Review.
for healing a shattered world. In a
richly textured collection, layered
with Biblical echoes and the music
of the Psalms, John F. Deane
explores the possibilities of poetry
to redress the failures of care
towards the planet and the needs
of society. Deane revives the
language of sacrament and
celebration with raw and tender
grace; in sonnets, narratives and
lyrics Eye of the Hare advances
towards redemption. In the book's
final section, Deane honours the
places and landscapes of Achill,
that beautiful, demanding island
off the west coast of Ireland.
No other contemporary Irish poet,
and few Irish writers, have mastered
the art of eloquent, impassioned
expression as artistic statement as
beautifully as John F. Deane. This is
a major European writer of
conscience. . . Irish Times
I read and re-read the music of John
Deane: a fine poet for our lives'
divided seasons. Alison
Brackenbury, Poetry Review.
| Reviews: "The fine opening poem, Travelling Man, situates the poet in transit, at the centre of a web that stretches backwards and forwards to points in space and time, noting his immediate airport environment as quickly as his island upbringing and future flight. . . The poem is typical of Deane's late style: enjambed and rapid, grounded in concrete details but allegorically minded. . . Eye of the Hare is notable, in fact, for its loose-limbed energy and variety, including, for example, three strikingly different long poems: one narrative, Weeds and Wilderness, and two more meditate sequences, Body Parts and Achill: The Island. (Irish Times) July 2011 |
