Birds: Sketches from Birding

Birds often symbolize spiritual freedom. The universe for them is vast and without end. Free from attachments and from all earthly treasures, they listen to Mother Nature. Never tired, from far and near, they are wild in spirit and move between the worlds: between earth, air, and water.

Birds are the symphony and poetry of nature on the earth and live with an elegant simplicity tinged with a pure loneliness with worldly cares left behind. The world for them is an open book and every object seen unlocks a new faculty for the mind.

Bird Wisdom

The fundamental themes of landscape, love and loss are all celebrated in this collection. Some of the poems have a political quality, reflecting the challenges and uncertainties of life in the 21st century; others simply honour the joy, the struggles, and the hopefulness of daily life.

The poems encompass a wide genre, but all reflect a connection between people and place. Many celebrate the poet’s ‘home paddock’ while others look to the wider world. Though the inspiration is landscapes familiar to the author, the themes are universal and resonant.

Beyond the Moon

Beyond the Moon is an intimate collection of poetry about enormous stigma, Otherness and marginality, detailing with my personal experiences as a young woman living on the cusp of two very different worlds. As a young girl growing up in the United Kingdom, I was continuously made aware of my ethnic differences. The conventional Western education made no allusion to the Mauritian Muslim; I found no commonplace, no companionship with another in this world, no one like me.

Even I deceived myself with the expectation to normalise and acclimatise to the Barbie doll model. I was taught that I was not beautiful because I did not resemble this traditional model. Thus, this collection of poetry materialises and communicates such experiences, exploring the ‘dark side of the moon’.

Being Jane Doe

Jane Doe is every woman we meet, interact with and share our personal or professional spaces with. Through a series of discussions, interviews and interactions, Jane Doe is revealed in a variety of forms throughout this poetry piece. She is your mother, wife, daughter, sister, an abused spouse, a divorcee, a young girl suffering with low self-esteem who seeks inclusion, a LGBTQI person, a professional, a warrior and an inspiration to everyone who takes the time to read this compilation of poems story which relate to the high and low points of her life.

Being Jane Doe explores themes which captures the essence of femininity and explore the reality of womanhood through life stories written in poetry form. These themes include love and feelings, sexuality and relationships, self-harm and surviving abuse, parental relationships and family life, pregnancy and motherhood, religion and spirituality, and finally, self-worth and identity.

You or a woman in your life is Jane Doe, read the poetry of her life and become captivated in an unbreakable bond.

Being Jane Doe is a book for women and the men that care about them!

Becoming a Parent

Becoming a Parent is an exciting and diverse collection of short poems written to be relatable to anyone on this journey.
The time of becoming a parent is an exciting one: a time to learn a lot about yourselves and others. You’ll be faced with unforgettable moments and delightful decisions. This book hopes to give you a little insight to some of these moments and decisions. Some poems express joy, others sorrow; but most express the abundance of love you feel for your child.
Everyone is different in what they experience or what they may choose to do when becoming a parent, and that’s okay.
(The secret messages highlighted in each poem give you a little message as an extra.)

Bargains

Veteran detectives Betty Kovaks and Jeff Wheeler take an early morning call to investigate an arson and murder. With Kovaks’ intuition and Wheeler’s methodical style, their partnership combines astute crime scene assessment and scientific evidence to build a shrewd investigation.

Vetted by three veteran detectives, this work will appeal to crime drama readers who expect realism and crisp dialogue.

The investigation dives deeply into the grip of methamphetamine addiction and fencing stolen property. Unconventional twists await: murder, death by sepsis, a car bomb, deportation to India, and a fatal encounter with a PTSD afflicted homeowner.

The narrative’s underpinnings rise from the author’s decades of experience as a state trial judge, criminal defense attorney, and assistant district attorney.

"Interesting characters, engaging story, accurate police work. A good read." 

– Kurt Wuest,
Lane County Sheriff’s Office Detective, (ret.)

"Crafted from his decades of experience, Billings weaves a compelling tale of criminals' lives in raw peril. He aptly portrays the addict as delinquent and victim in a savvy blend of mystery and suspense."

– Sherry Sandreth, PhD.

Banana & Salted Caramel

In Banana & Salted Caramel, Holly Jackson brings together verse and prose written across two decades, expressing themes such as loss, growth, hope, infertility and political strife with humour, honesty, vulnerability and satirical wit.
From poems about graveyards and brain freeze to stories chronicling the unintended consequences of a hen party game, Jackson takes us on a journey, through poetry and prose, spanning years, exploring what it means to be an adult, a wife, a mother and a woman.

Ballads of Loss and Woe

Every ascent is met with a descent. After reaching the pinnacle, basking in achievements and joy, an unforeseen force can bring it all crashing down. Life’s unpredictable blows can dismantle our realities, leaving behind a trail of questions and broken dreams.

As the facade of life dissipates, pillars once deemed steadfast vanish, and we’re left grappling with the remnants. The author revisits the starting point, navigating a world shaped by revelations, torn between passion and profound pain.

In his signature surreal narrative style, he paints a vivid picture of his transformed reality: a tumultuous terrain of emotion. This collection delves deep into themes of grief, betrayal, and existential sorrow. When life thrusts you into an unfamiliar realm, do you question if it’s all just a grand illusion?

From melancholic poems and heart-wrenching tales to soulful songs, this is a journey through the darkest corridors of a wounded heart. These are the words from the depths of despair, a testament to the fragile human spirit.

Awaken, Broken Soul

All my life, I was hiding behind a Girl, who was scared of showing her true self.
Who wanted to be somebody else so urgently.
Nevertheless, it should be okay to show, that we struggle with self-esteem sometimes,
that we hurt ourselves because we cannot confront the ones who hurt us.
We are forced to hide the parts that define us, whether it is a depression you are not supposed to talk about,
a man who uses his power to abuse you mentally,
a family that rips you apart,
or a life you never chose to live.
I want to end the hiding and stop the silence.
All of us went through,
go through,
dark thoughts,
and miserable times like that.
And I survived.
We survived.
You survived.
Or will survive.
So, will you listen?

At War Within Myself

“If you are not into poetry, this book may change your mind. Like many people, I was put off poetry at school – over 50 years ago now – by a teacher who threatened (and carried out) ‘the slipper’ to any boy who could not recite his favourite poem off by heart. Having gone through life never realising or understanding the sweet nuances of poetry, I missed out on a whole raft of literature.
It took my terminal illness to make me understand that, through poetry, one can have the imagination stirred to such a degree, that your whole view on life can be change in an instant. Climate change, poverty, homelessness. Illness, and now pandemic, are all part of life today. Also, to have a Faith can change one’s attitude to life.
The poems in this book highlight the cruelty and compassion of life, the wonder of creation. If we don’t do something pretty quickly, we will lose it… But also to laugh at life can be a great tonic. To put faith and trust in a ‘Higher Power’ will help get us all through it.”
Peter Phillips

Assorted Musings

If you enjoy a varied reading covering a variety of topics, some contemporary and some older, then this could well appeal to you. It is far removed from traditional romantic poetry. Nevertheless, it provides thought provoking material. There is something for everyone in this eclectic potpourri of reflective musings. Enjoy it at your leisure!

As I Rhymember It!

This little volume of poems and short stories is an absolute gem. It is the first time these writers have cooperated on a work published in the UK; they are already both published in Europe.

The mix of verse and stories makes it easy for the reader to pause and reflect, when required. The theme is “relationships” remembered and “Rhymembered” with plenty of poetic licence. Relationships in all their forms, noble, spiritual, sensual, and sexual. The wanting, the chasing, the capture, the high-octane climaxes, and all that follows. Sadly, sometimes abject failure and painful defeat.

All human emotion is here, raw, and unexpurgated. The twist is the way the authors decide to treat their subject. Doom and gloom play no part in this work. It’s light, wry, and lively throughout. As I Rhymember It! uses wit to smooth and sooth the many emotional extremes.

But this is no bedroom expose. The “action” takes place in a variety of settings as diverse as, a golf club AGM, a travelling Victorian circus big top, a suburban restaurant, and a European shopping Mall.

For an ever-changing backdrop, to the ever-changing world of human relationships, look no further than, As I Rhymember It! by Finbar Hanaghan, from the original ideas of Barry Thomas Harris.