Jack Straw's Castle
Gunn, Thom. Faber and Faber, 1976 (1st Paperback). Softbound. Edmund White described Gunn as 'the last of the commune dwellers . . . serious and intellectual by day and druggy and sexual by night.' This post-formalist book, written after Gunn's emigration to the US, reflects this sentiment: 'Charles Manson, tongue / playing over dry lips,' he writes in the collection's title poem, 'thinking a long thought; / and the Furies, mad / puppetry heads appearing / in the open transom above'. A beautifully designed collection by the paradoxical English poet, featuring letterpress printing and an eye-popping hand-lettered, spot-color cover.
Tight, square, uncreased spine. Clean, unmarked interior. Some bumped corners and very gentle edge-wear, but no other notable wear. 78 pp. Poetry.
