Thank you to the publisher for sending copies of this Poetry Pharmacy Forever by Willliam Sieghart for our reading group.
I really enjoyed the look and feel of this book. The textured, old fashioned cover gives it weight and a tactile appeal, the design of the front cover is comforting and evokes classics, but the shocking pink colour is warming and modern. I’m a sucker for a good book cover, and you’d better believe I judge.
I hadn’t come across any of the previous poetry pharmacy collections, and I found this to be a charming idea and an interesting addition to my reading pile. Offering poems “prescribed” for specific times in life, such as grief, moving apart, or great escapes, there’s a commentary accompanying each poem to give further insight.
The poems themselves are well chosen and nicely curated. I enjoyed the accompanying notes and overall felt they added to the impact of the poetry. I’d read some of the poems included before, but having a new perspective to read gave them a new aspect for me and I really like that. I haven’t read them all yet, I’d dipped in and out and I think I’ll carry on dipping. In fact I may invest in the other prescription collections to further my dipping options. I’ve been inspired to recommend some of the poems to others, which is one of the points of such a collection I’m sure.
We’ll shortly have copies in stock at both libraries for staff to borrow, or to leaf through in the wellbeing section.
Find out more about the Wellbeing Reading Groups at https://gehswft.wordpress.ptfs-europe.co.uk/wellbeing/wellbeing-reading-groups/