Story: Saleema Imam
Burngreave resident and published poet, David Norris-Kay, has recently published his latest anthology, ‘From Time-Buried Years’. The book contains an eclectic mix of new verses and selections from past published work and features the author’s preference for traditional rhyming poetry with a definite rhythm.
As a child, David won prizes for English but his writing career began with song lyrics for a local rock group in 1967 and for his former wife, a folk singer, in ’71. ‘Autumn’s Reflection’ in this book was one of her most enduring performances. Realising the lyrics stood on their own as poetry, David began to create verse just for himself.
His life experience – working on a farm when he left school and later 29 years doing various jobs with the postal service – fed into the poetry he produced, the main themes being Time Passing, the Natural World and Childhood Memories.
David is a private person but shares his work with other poets around the country in the old fashioned way – by post – finding it easier to offer and receive objective criticism of his own and other’s work this way. In fact he says, “I write more letters than I do poems these days.” He contributes to several small press magazines nationally including the Salopian Poetry Society and it was one of these, ‘Reach’, which asked him to compile this latest book. An English language poetry magazine published in India – Metverse Muse is to date his farthest venture.
Two of David’s favourite poems are ‘Swan’ which won 1st prize in 2007 and ‘Santorini’ a 3rd in 2005 in an international competition. Some I enjoyed from his book – Clematis, Snowdrops, Washing and Brothers-in- War. Well worth reading.
To purchase a copy of the book, contact the Messenger on 242 0564 and we will put you in touch with David.
(ISBN 978-0-9553589-7-5 published by Indigo Dreams Press)