Family Lines

A companion for life, this anthology is filled with unforgettable poems by, for and about parents.

Poets have been writing about their parents or their children throughout history - and the subject remains as much a puzzle, an amazement and a source of sorrow as it always has been.

Poets have been writing about their parents or their children throughout history - and the subject remains as much a puzzle, an amazement and a source of sorrow as it always has been. Family Lines traces this rich tradition, presenting poetic perspectives on pregnancy and birth, loss and letting go, mothers and fathers, ageing and grief.

Simon Armitage and Rachel Bower's marvellous selection stretches from antiquity to the present day. We can therefore enjoy father-and-son encounters from Homer alongside Roger Robinson's; Christina Rossetti and Mary Jean Chan writing on mothers; the aftermath of childbirth according to William Blake and Hollie McNish. Whether measured in 'sweet-wild weeks' or 'obstinate, exhausted mornings', through 'torment shared' or 'each miniscule miracle' - this anthology celebrates what connects us across generations.