Anna’s Indigo Dreams pamplet, 'Ghosting for beginners' is a rich mix of earthy exploration of nature, politics and the afterlife.
From poem such as 'Wood Garlic', I was drawn into a world of ancient nature and otherworldly force (such as Shakespeare’s head witch, Hecate). The description, 'ripping the stitch of root/from the dark weave of earth' made me see nature as powerful and in this poem, Anna explores how humanity is rooted in nature – and that our vulnerability can be seen as a shared trait.
Saunders' collection is political but subtly so. She describes cars as 'a carnival of sick cockroaches with gaudy shells' which makes a guarded statement about pollution and what effect our habits are having on the planet. More explicitly, Anna explores in 'A murmation above the city’, how politicians gather like dead mist, gathered together as one mind, with no independent thoughts. Anna is satrical (which I love) and in poems such as 'How to paint a Brexit Angel’, she sums up the current political situation in a comedic and clever style.
A theme of Indigo Dreams Pamphlets seems to be folklore and ancient traditions or oral storytelling. The most interesting story for me in this collection was learning about the Chinese traditional of Ghost marriage, whereby a bride can still go through with her wedding even if her fiance dies!
Overall, Anna Saunders has created a clever collection which beautifully weaves from one theme to the next. I will now go and read all of Saunders' work, which is clearly that of an experienced artist with a unique voice as a poet.
Buy a copy from Indigo Dreams here