An Aviary of Small Birds

By Karen McCarthy Woolf

An Aviary of Small Birds is both elegy to a stillborn son and testament to the redemptive qualities of poetry as a transformative art. Here, birth paradoxically becomes the moment of death when, after a long labour, the baby's heart gives out. However, just as grief is not linear, so too the book follows an emotional rather than a chronological arc. Ultimately, it is a closely felt connection with nature that allows the author to transcend the experience and honour the spirit of her son.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Oxford Poets
• Release date: Oct 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781906188252

Karen McCarthy Woolf

Described in The Poetry Review as 'extraordinarily moving and technically flawless', Karen McCarthy Woolf's celebrated début was a Guardian Book of the Year and  PBS  Recommendation. She has presented her poetry in many forms, from collaborative choreography and radio soundscape to audiovisual installation, in venues around the world, from Mexico City and Singapore to the us and the Caribbean.