The best recent poetry – review roundup

Caleb Femi's 'The Wickedest' is a multimedia exploration of a vibrant house party culture, blending poetry with visual elements like photos and floor plans. It reflects on the communal experiences of Black working-class communities, capturing the interplay of grief and joy through dance and music. Raymond Antrobus's 'Signs, Music' delves into parental anxieties, intertwining themes of deafness and heritage while contemplating the joys and challenges of new life amidst societal prejudices. Kathleen Jamie's 'The Keelie Hawk' presents a bilingual collection that translates Scots poems into English, offering observations of nature and the interconnectedness of life. Lastly, Carl Phillips's 'Scattered Snows, to the North' is a meditative work that addresses themes of love, memory, and the current climate crisis, showcasing the depth and emotional complexity of human experience. Each collection contributes uniquely to contemporary poetry, inviting readers to engage with personal and collective narratives.