Jane

About the Book: 

these words
these words are naked
stripped bare to the bone
an inch from the edge
of this endless road
fiery bright shots
straight and clear

Jane is a dynamic and distinctive first collection by performance poet Anita Govan. Written on the breath, her poetry captures the melody of everyday life in all its sweetness and discord. These poems – perceptive, lyrical and assured – represent an inspiring triumph over severe dyslexia. Full of imagery that is rich and startling, they draw from the wellspring of personal experience to touch on universal themes and contemporary issues.

Anita Govan performs her poetry with ‘radiance, warmth and depth of feeling – it’s all superb stuff, sensually presented’ (edinburghguide.com). Her dedication to promoting performance poetry and slams with Big Word won the accolade of kick-starting ‘an interest in poetry not seen since the days of Hugh MacDiarmid and Dylan Thomas’ (Scotland on Sunday).

Reviews: 

artfully sculpted poems. SUNDAY HERALD

Anita Govan is one of those rare performance poets whose written work is as strong on the page as it is from the stage. DAVID JOHNSON, CO-FOUNDER PARALALIA

Anita Govan's poetry is unafraid to clack its high heels down city streets late at night. Never mind reality TV, Anita delivers reality poetry. ROSEMARY DUN, POET AND AUTHOR

About the Author:

ANITA GOVAN was born in Stirling and has been deeply involved in the artistic community of Edinburgh and Scotland for over 15 years. She has performed all over Scotland, the UK and abroad, as well as appearing on TV and radio and being placed on the Scottish Book Trust Writers List. Having never published a collection of her poetry before, Jane represents the first chance her work will have to reach people who are unable to attend her performances, or who wish to have a written record of her work.