White Eye of the Needle - Chris Campbell Illustrated by Sandra Evans - Blog Tour

 This is an engaging collection of poems that includes lockdown thoughts in amongst  - non-lockdown thoughts! I found it interesting because it serves to place the events of this last year into one’s life space as if it were something expected, almost, not some unique and unprecedented event that threw us all off balance! Somehow putting it into words achieves a precarious balance, cerebrally,  and so you read of holidays in Italy, city farms, skiing and honeymoons alongside poems that speak of self isolation, social distancing and digital connections. 

There’s some insightful observations. I particularly liked;

‘Middle aged partners, singletons, drink
In one hand, experience in the other-‘

’Time doesn’t slow down to save me,
So why should I speed up to save time?’


I found the style and structure quite refreshing in these days of convention defiance and obsession with being different and experimental (not that those are necessarily bad things) to see rhyme used almost effortlessly, although I’m sure it was not effortless! I especially enjoyed Synchronised Buskers where the end of one rhyming couplet led thematically into the next. Hit the Slopes is a great example of concrete poetry which I can remember from the olden days, when I was a student, being hailed as innovative and almost risqué in terms of defying poetry convention!

I liked Mr Cat for it mirrored my own observation of flora and fauna evading the impositions of lockdown with an almost blissful unawareness.

’No one will disrupt your kingdom, Mr. Cat…..’

I loved Illustration which compared ones hunger for books and reading to a meal of several courses.

‘The cover,
your placemat,
bookmark like cutlery,
an illustration to savour
like dessert’

Illustration? That brings me nicely to the art work in the collection. I’d like to say a word about the delightful illustrations by Sandra Evans. Sometimes it’s easy to overlook such things when you are programmed to focus on the etymology! But these drawing are a perfect complement to the poems. Understated - not attempting to dominate or drive attention away from the poetry. They reminded me a little of those adult colouring books that were all the rage a few years back. I could even picture myself at some in the future colouring in as I re read the poems!

My thanks to Isabelle Kenyon for inviting me to the blog tour and to Chris for a gifted copy of the book with a treasured personal post it note message.