Description

Di Sylvester’s debut poetry pamphlet engages with a melange of Victorian lives—each living a very different 15 April 1851. While Dickens struggles to tell his wife of their little Dora’s death, Elizabeth Gaskell visits an asylum, Marian Evans finds courage to return to London, Thomas Hill Green searches for willow tits, Euphemia and Constance are smitten by the Queen of Sheba, and Elizabeth Richardson tries to beat her brains out.

This fascinating selection of poems delights with lively re-imaginings grounded, some more and some less, in historical sources: in letters, newspapers, and memoir. While ‘Miss Brontë considers Mr Taylor’s offer’ and ‘Princess Helena pays a visit’ play with the sonnet form, many of the poems are written in free verse, using imagery and echo to effect their striking poetic quality. Together, they challenge our often-monochrome assumptions of how one could live a Victorian life.

Di Sylvester writes poems and short stories. She lives on Gundungurra country in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales. She holds a PhD in history from the University of Sydney and an MA (Creative Writing) from The Open University (UK). Di is a keen jigsaw puzzler.

Product details
ISBN: 978-0-6459294-2-3
Published: May 2024
Pages: 38
Cover: paperback
Weight: 140 grams
Dimensions: 148 mm (w) x 210 mm (h) x 5 mm (thick)
Printed & bound in Australia

Click here for sample pages:
15 April 1851 sample pages