Poem of the month: How to Do Absolutely Nothing by Barbara Kingsolver | The Guardian

The best recent poetry – review roundup Rent a house near the beach, or a cabinbut: Do not take your walking shoes.Don’t take any clothes you’d wearanyplace anyone would see you.Don’t take your rechargeables.Take Scrabble if you have to,but not a dictionary and nopencils for keeping score.Don’t take a cookbookor anything to cook.A fishing pole, okbut not the line,hook, sinker,leave it all.Find outwhat’sleft.• How to Fly (In Ten Thousand Easy Lessons) by Barbara Kingsolver is published by Faber (£14.99). To order a copy go to guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply. Continue reading…

• The best recent poetry – review roundup

Rent a house near the beach, or a cabin
but: Do not take your walking shoes.
Don’t take any clothes you’d wear
anyplace anyone would see you.
Don’t take your rechargeables.
Take Scrabble if you have to,
but not a dictionary and no
pencils for keeping score.
Don’t take a cookbook
or anything to cook.
A fishing pole, ok
but not the line,
hook, sinker,
leave it all.
Find out
what’s
left.

• How to Fly (In Ten Thousand Easy Lessons) by Barbara Kingsolver is published by Faber (£14.99). To order a copy go to guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply.

Continue reading…