Collected Contraptions

Peter McCarey's first full collection, comprising work from his five pamphlets, is an exhilarating journey on the U-bahns and runways of language: ?In a matter of hours / they can take you anywhereOCO. Collected Contraptions opens with water, rain and shadows; the inscription of ?the singer's markOCO from the lost language of the Indus Valley civilisation shines from a Shakespeare sonnet; we are caught in a sci-fi spaghetti Western; a shady Czech smuggles a golem and a robot into pre-massacre Rwanda. Language shape-shifts, reinvents itself, before going on another road trip where stories are recited backwards and fast forward. Last is ?TantrisOCO, an epic of intricate narrative whose message couldn't be more simple: ?Don't go: don't let the morning/ Turn your head with her shivering, thin grace.OCO" Comprising work from Peter McCarey's five pamphlet collections, this poetic exploration is an exhilarating journey of language. Reflecting the author's European outlook and wide range of influences—from Russian poet Alexandr Blok to the principles of Buddhism—this account describes a sci-fi spaghetti Western, narrates the story of a shady Czech who smuggles a golem and a robot into pre-massacre Rwanda, and voyages to other unexpected places. Poetry lovers will relish this original and experimental work. This is a generous selection of poems by Peter McCarey. It includes sections from the Syllabary, an Internet poetry project showcased at the StAnza poetry festival.