Review of Sea Without a Shore by Tim Taylor

Tim Taylor’s debut poetry collection from Maytree Press takes us on a journey through our universe, from the rugged Yorkshire moors to outer space; a journey strewn with pot plants and pharaohs, hill farmers, castles and lovers.

‘Mountain Man’ is a glorious portrait of a sheep farmer and the wild landscape that has shaped “the ridge and dale of him”, his eyes at sunset revealing his secret:

“this place does not bind him
as towns will tether other men”

The collection’s title comes from the poem ‘Pioneer’ – another favourite. This is a poem told from the viewpoint of the the Pioneer spacecraft:

“Obedient, I spied on giants,
sent my postcards home”

Yet the Pioneer is now free from human masters, hurtling through the void, 11 billion miles from earth, free to “navigate this sea without a shore”.

I also love the achingly beautiful poem, “The Old Couple”; a mature love story:

“time has smothered their curves and hollows,
sanded them to fit each other
like pebbles rubbed together by the sea.”

This debut collection is a really enjoyable read – accessible, immersive and innovative.

You can buy Sea Without a Shore here

Review by Gail Aldwin

Aother lovely review for Scratched Enamel Heart today from Gail Aldwin, author of The String Games:

"This short fiction collection contains twenty-four emotionally-charged stories that take readers on a journey to households and communities in a range of countries. Through these stories, Amanda Huggins cleverly shows us the commonality of emotional experience. That feelings of isolation, love, grief, loss and regret occur in different backgrounds and cultures. And equally, that hope and the promise of a fresh start is possible. Amanda Huggins writes in a beautiful and empathetic way to immerse readers in the challenges and dilemmas she presents to her characters. As readers we care about these characters and learn from them. This is a truthful, authentic and essential read."

Two Lovely Reviews!

Two lovely reviews of my work today. The first from Angela Readman for Scratched Enamel Heart:

"Reading Amanda Huggins is like taking a journey around the world. Her stories are so beautifully written we forget where we are. Japan, Russia, Paris, London, the States, we are drawn into a series of fascinating lives. Hearts are broken but survive, scuffed and painted bright colours, people never fail to keep trying. These are stories we need to read."  Angela Readman 

 

Out 27th May - you can pre-order here 

 

And a great review for The Collective Nouns for Birds from Hannah Ruth Retallick:

 

 "A wonderful poetry collection. A range of human experience expressed with such empathy. One of my favourite poems was ‘No Doubt’; I strongly related to it, even though I’ve not been in the exact situation. That’s powerful writing! A beautifully produced book too, with thick pages and lovely cover art, which makes it feel extra special."

 

You can buy a copy here 

 

 

 

 

Saboteur Awards Voting Form is Live!

Here's the link for the second voting form for the Saboteur Awards!

 
Please please take a minute to vote for The Collective Nouns for Birds in the Best Poetry Pamphlet category! Thank you so much!

Absolutely delighted that The Collective Nouns for Birds has been shortlisted for a Saboteur Ward this year! Voting opens again on Sunday, so could I please ask all of you who voted for me to vote again then! 

 

Scratched Enamel Heart - Review by Allison Symes

ALLISON'S REVIEW OF SOME OF THE STORIES IN SCRATCHED ENAMEL HEART

"I loved the variety of stories here. Amanda Huggins captures details so well, you can see the things she wants you to see, hear the things she wants you to hear. Her use of all the senses in her stories is wonderful. When she describes food being eaten, it is as if you were there watching the food being eaten! This is hard to pull off well. All of the stories will move you and make you wonder what you would do if you were this character faced with this situation. Huggins creates a miniature world with every story, and you are drawn in, almost hypnotically.


I also love the selection of specific details. For example when referring to a box, it is a cherrywood box. Little things like that add richness to a story and there is plenty of that here to savour and enjoy.


I liked the mixture of story lengths too. Some of my favourites were:-

Light Box. I loved the fact that the awful stepmother doesn't get away with it, and the way the father engineered his own escape. Heartwarming. Excellent characterisation.
Violet, Flint, and The Softest Blue. Liked the portrayal of Phoebe, who takes in more than I think even she realises.
Listing. A great flash piece.
Pretty. Made me shudder - as it should do.
Strong, Not Rough.  I've always loved stories where the underdog wins out. This is a good example of that.
Red. Boy did this one stir the emotions. Would love to know what happened to the characters beyond the end of the story, but that's always a sign of a cracking story.
For Sale. Deeply moving. Glad it ended the way it did!
No Doubt. A wonderfully moving description of real love and anticipated grief. Although he returns she knows one day she'll lose him and dreads the thought. A celebration of mature love I think. I like that. It's not something I've come across that often in fiction and I think it easy to forget older people love too. I also like love stories based on real emotion developed over years - not the superficial, glamorous type that fades and vanishes as people get older. So this story, as you can tell, had real resonance for me."

 

Allison writes for Chandler's Ford Today, and is the authour of the flash fiction  collection From Light to Dark and Back Again (Chapeltown Books)

Scratched Enamel Heart is here!

So excited to receive my advance copies of Scratched Enamel Heart today! It looks fabulous!

Scratched Enamel Heart

My new short story collection, Scratched Enamel Heart, will be published by Retreat West Books on 27th May, and can already be pre-ordered here.

The beautiful cover was designed by Triona Walsh, and it's great to see the Costa logo sticker on there too. I can't wait to get hold of a real live copy!

I've already had a lovely review from Gill James at Bridgehouse Publishing/Chapeltown Books - Gill published my first flash fiction collection, Brightly Coloured Horses, back in 2018.

"The short stories in this collection give a strong sense of time and place and allow the reader to follow the characters as they make a journey. Sometimes this is an actual physical journey, at other times it is a journey of the soul. Each story too brings with it an atmosphere that we cannot ignore. We are drawn to the characters and their settings.

These are fine stories and Amanda Huggins has really mastered the art of packing a lot of content into a short space without overwhelming the reader. These tales are beautifully crafted. Huggins uses language well. This is short-story telling at its best."

The Beekeeper's Apprentice by David Coldwell - A Review

The Bee-keeper’s Apprentice by David Coldwell is a glorious collection, dripping with rich, vivid language. The poems are closely observed, revelling in the use of all the senses.

Coldwell appears to live and breathe as one with the countryside he inhabits, and being familiar with this stark and wonderful landscape, I found myself swiftly transported back there by his words. Coldwell extols the vivid beauty of nature in all its forms, effortlessly conjuring up the spirit of the West Yorkshire moors, their darkness and light, their fierce beauty, just as he brings them to life in his equally marvellous paintings.

Yet his poems are family stories too, filled with the ache and yearning, the hope and joy of unconditional love.

‘We hadn’t seen you for weeks and to throw
our best dish onto the lino
seemed a strange way to say hello.’

A poignant and beautiful collection.

Cover Reveal

Today's the day to reveal the beautiful cover for my new short story collection, Scratched Enamel Heart. As it depicts a Russian Easter egg, this seemed the perfect weekend to share it for the first time. The cover designer is the talented Triona Walsh. I shared the idea and colour sheme I had in mind with Triona, and she captured it perfectly. 

It's a difficult time to launch a book, and it's a difficult time to write a book too! I'm still working - though after my Easter break I'll be working from home rather than the office - so I haven't any more time than normal for writing. Like many people, I'm struggling to concentrate at the moment, so I'm just writing a daily diary, which I share with friends by email once a week. 

I had a few readings set up, both to promote my poetry collection, The Collective Nouns for Birds, and one to launch SEH in June. Of course these have all been cancelled now, so I'm hoping to make up for it with new dates in the autumn.

This means I can spend the time I have promoting Scratched Enamel Heart. A few bloggers and reviewers are reading it at the moment, so hopefully I'll have some feedback to share soon.

I'm also planning an online launch party on Facebook - 4PM-8PM on 27th May. There'll be readings and chat and virtual champagne, and I'd love it if you'd pop in and say hello! If you'd like an invite and you're not on my Facebook friend list, then now's the time to send me a friend request!

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Scratched Enamel Heart contains the Costa prize-winning story, 'Red', and will be released by Retreat West Books on 27th May, for Kindle and in paperback. The Kindle edition is already available to pre-order here.

THE BLURB:

The resilience and frailty of the human heart lie at the core of this second short story collection from award-winning author, Amanda Huggins.

A lonely woman spends a perfect night with a stranger, yet is their connection enough to make her realise life is worth living? Maya, a refugee, wears a bracelet strung with charms that are a lifeline to her past; when the past catches up with her, she has a difficult decision to make. Rowe’s life on the Yorkshire coast is already mapped out for him, but when there is an accident at the steelworks he knows he has to flee from an intolerable future. In the Costa prize-winning ‘Red’, Mollie is desperate to leave Oakridge Farm and her abusive stepfather, to walk free with the stray dog she has named Hal.

These are stories filled with yearning and hope, the search for connection and the longing to escape. They transport the reader from India to Japan, from mid-west America to the north-east coast of England, from New York to London. Battered, bruised, jaded or jilted, the human heart somehow endures.

'A remarkable writer.' Cath Holland

'With just a few killer sentences she hooks you into a new world' Ali Thurm

'Huggins’ prose is both beautiful and heart breaking' Tracy Fells

'Huggins is a highly accomplished writer who uses language both beautiful and at the same time sparing, there are no indulgent passages of prose to detract from the main message. Every word is weighed before inclusion. A delight.' Sandra Danby