Missel-Child

Overview

According to the 17th-century herbarium The Garden of Eden, a “missel-child†is a mysterious being found beneath a mistletoe-covered tree—a changeling, perhaps. In this first collection from a respected editor, the missel-child is a point of access to various archaeologies of identity, place, and language. The poems deploy syllabics and collage techniques as they explore elegy and myth. Each poem is a space in which language works not only to convey something verbally, but to enable it to be shown as well.

Reviews

"Her quiet, precise poems have a genuine eeriness."  —Grevel Lindop, author, Playing with Fire and Travels on the Dance Floor

"The poems in this collection resonate and ring true, tugging at thoughts and feelings just beyond the fully conscious mind. A beautiful book."  —Carola Luther, author, Arguing with Malarchy and Walking the Animals

"Missel-Child is an exceptional volume. . . . This highly original book will be returned to over and over again."  —Jeffrey Wainwright, author, Poetry: The Basics and The Reasoner

Author Biography

Helen Tookey is a freelance editor and the author of Telling the Fractures, a short story collection. Her poetry appeared in the anthology New Poetries V.