The Arctic Diaries

By Melissa Davies

A poetic project of preservation and sense of place. Rich imagery and language dives deep into the lives of coastal communities in the far north of Norway, from debut poet, Melissa Davies

When the fisherman dies Fleinvær stories spill out silver strings, like guts from a spring catch. But between these pages they survive.

The Arctic Diaries chart generations of the characters, myths and misremembered details that make up the oral traditions of a windswept archipelago in Norway’s far north. Created over a single arctic winter, using stories gathered from the last surviving fisherman of Langholmen, this collection of poems are part history, part field notes, exploring what role the outsider plays in preserving the experience of another.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arachne Press
• Release date: Apr 27, 2023
• ISBN: 9781913665753

Melissa Davies

Melissa Davies is a poet recently returned to Cumbria. A short career in cancer care, followed by travel writing, somehow led to a winter spent running a Norwegian island retreat. Back at the foot of the fells she used this experience to create 'The Arctic Diaries', a poetic project of preservation and sense of place. Previous poems published by Arachne in 'Time and Tide'; and in Alliterati Magazine, Maybe Later Press & Oh Comely Magazine.