Many of the poems in the collection, FRIDA KAHLO'S CRY AND OTHER POEMS, take the viewpoint of an historical person. The poems give voice, among others, to Lord Byron, Frida Kahlo, Amelia Earhart, Howard Hughes, Joan of Arc and Jack the Ripper. Several deal with themes of depression and agoraphobia.'Apocryphal' gives a voice to the words that have been locked out from the cannon, the words that have been ostracised and excluded but that somehow have managed to find a way in anyway, slipping through a crack in the door that has been accidentally left ajar. 'Resurfacing From the Wreck' alludes to the Adrienne Rich poem 'Diving Into The Wreck' and could be construed as being about the poet's art of diving within to come up with 'pearls.' 'The Crows and Me' refers to the poetry of Ted Hughes and features a fire goddess swooping and diving across the London skyline. Most of the poems have appeared previously in print or in online journals in New Zealand or the UK, but this is the first time they have appeared together in a collection. LAURA SOLOMON'S POETRY holds a fascinating sharp edge, and much wry humour, quite a few surprises. The famous, infamous, and notorious feature here, at times they're chatty, or offering insights we'd never know quite this way otherwise, then they're tender or mysterious too. Free verse with a revealing aspect. Language adeptly chosen, original, simple, occasionally about some messy events but written clean like a new, sharp knife. Most enjoyable, and a little alarming as well, prepare for an adventure. --Raewyn Alexander, Prize-winner Miles Hughes Achievement Award 2014 - for Innovation, Perseverance, and Effective Involvement in Independent Publishing ONE OF THE PURPOSES OF POETRY is to make inner thought visible; the things which were previously invisible (or unknown) that can only be revealed through poetic speculation. Laura Solomon's work makes no claim that poetry is "truth", while yet accessing its potential to grasp the slippery nature of "reality". What are the crows thinking (as in 'The Crows and Me'), or do their postulations and impulses even come close to the human mind? Laura Solomon takes on the poetic task of attempting to expose the outlook of the non-human, or the thoughts of the historically remote personality, such as Frida Kahlo, Joan of Arc, Lord Byron, and Howard Hughes (among others); speaking for these creatures and people in the melancholic demeanor of the yet-to-be-understood, or alternately, expressing the plaintive lament of all of us who languish within the confines of a missed opportunity. Solomon gives all of that a voice, while acknowledging the limits of language and the human psyche (as in 'Apocryphal'). As she states, (in 'Resurfacing From the Wreck') "If I still had a tongue in my head/I could tell you what I saw down there". -- Andrew S. Guthrie, author of the poetry collection, Alphabet (Proverse 2015), Proverse Prize finalist, 2013.
LAURA SOLOMON is a versatile writer, having published novels, poetry collections, short story collections and young adult fiction and she has won prizes in several literary competitions, including the inaugural Proverse Prize. Her work has appeared in the "Edinburgh Review" and "Wasafiri" (UK), "Takahe" and "Landfall" (New Zealand) among others. She has judged the Sentinel Quarterly Short Story Competition. "Frida Kahlo's Cry and other poems" is her second published poetry collection.
