Hummadruz by Hilary Llewellyn-Williams

Hummadruz brings together Hilary-Llewellyn-Williams' first two books, the long-absent The Tree Calendar (1987) and Book of Shadows (1990). The former includes her reputation-makingtitle sequence reflecting on the Celtic calendar, in which each month is represented by a tree. Book of Shadows includes a group of poems inspired by Giordano Bruno, Renaissance philosopher, monk, magician and poet, who was burned at the stake for heresy. The two sequences lie at the heart of Llewellyn-Williams' poetry, standing as it does at the interface of nature, mythology, contemporary science and mysticism. They are accompanied by gorgeous lyrics based on the poet's life in rural Wales in which nature and our attitude to the environment play a prominent role. Llewellyn-Williams' writing is rich, intricate, intense and full of dazzling imagery, all of which put the author at the forefrotn of nature poetry in Britain today.