These gorgeous ghosts , and yet ... / once in a mile, two smiles touch, unelectrically. ('Occassional Mobile Gold' - Will Daunt)

We are living in rectangular times. We put our present and our future in concrete boxes, our love lives scribled in tiny semi conductor chips carried onto some other obscure ill shaped box of metal and plastic. And yet there are those who seek myriad, undefined contours within and without this uni-shaped state of being  - Will Daunt epitomises that search in "Distant Close", his latest collection of poems.

And yet, Mr Daunt is not an activist. Yes, he raises his voice to protect what is dear to his heart, but it is not the voice of war, but a call for change from within. An artist first, he stays true to his readers throughout, delicately managing the balancing act between substance and form.  Changing his style ever so often, he experiments with rhyme and rhythm with the enthusiasm of a true connoisseur savouring the delicate wine of language. As one reads the chapter on "Some Secret English Homes" it becomes evident that there is definite poise to his narrative now - the deft strokes which were perhaps lacking in his earlier collections have become more pronounced, yet more precise.

With "Distant Close" Mr Daunt announces a poet's coming of age. It would be easy to draw a parallel now with some of the finest poets - take for instance the little bit of Mayakovsky boldness in "Growing Young", or the mild flavour of Heaney in "Kind Invasions" or "Cornwalls Converge". 

But mostly, this collection remains Will Daunt, one of the better poets writing out of  England today.