[Rory Waterman]

Thanks!

I think it is kind of natural to wonder about the selection process for an anthology such as this, whoever the editor is and whatever one thinks of the choices that have been made. But it is an anthology of poems more than a showcase of poets, and that is an important distinction. The editor, Sasha Dugdale not Roddy Lumsden, has evidently been charged with choosing her favourite poems from British publications, with little attention paid to who wrote them or the stature of the publications in which they appeared. This doesn't mean the book isn't littered with 'big' names - of course - but you see what I mean. I do find it intriguing that for two years in a row nothing has been taken from the TLS, as that is really the literary paper of record, but that in itself says something about the freedom the editor clearly has to go their own way whilst also producing a book with something for everyone. (Or perhaps I'm naively overlooking a copyright issue or something!)