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4.0 out of 5 stars
Morgan refreshes the readers other poets cannot reach..., 13 Aug 2005
Edwin Morgan, Scots Poet Laureate and esteemed translator, presents in this volume four sequences of poetry: the eponymous 'Virtual and Other Realities'; the commissioned work 'Beasts of Scotland'; 'The Five-Pointed Star' and the delightful piece, 'A Voyage'.'A Voyage' charts the meeting of sperm and egg from the points of view of the two protagonists; this work was broadcast on Radio 4, and like much of Morgan's work, is even better heard aloud than read straight from the page. 'Beasts of Scotland' was commissioned by the Glasgow Int. Jazz Festival in 1996, and was set to music by a leading saxophonist. The poems explore, as the title suggests, the fauna of Morgan's native land, but not always in the way one might expect... 'The Five Pointed Star', also a commissioned work, is a five-poem sequence, connecting five seemingly unconnected figures, four from history, one from the future, and ties them together, again with Scotland the subtle theme underpinning the set. Erudite and playful, Morgan pushes the boundries with effortless ease. 'Virtual and Other Realities' does exactly what it says on the tin; fifty triplet poems, examining the impact on the 'real' world, by the countless 'virtualities' that now surround us. Evocative, intricate, and sometimes very moving, these are excellent examples of the skill of Scotland's greatest living poet.
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