Twinning is well embedded in Lawrence Sail’s family: himself the son of a twin, he also has a twin sister and – youngest of his four children – twin daughters. His collection's title Double Takes reflects the poems’ central concern with many aspects of duality – whether manifested in the context of human relations, translations, ‘the moment saved from time’ or the touchstone of mortality. In some instances, juxtapositions and counterpoints bring affinities to light; in others, distance and difference. A number of the poems address the political and the public: the plight of refugees, a photo of Putin beside Gorbachev’s coffin, Brecht’s take on the ways of the world. Others confront the hard consequences of illness.
Most of all, these are poems that pay proper attention to their subjects, and which amount to an appreciation of beauty and balance, however precarious, as in ‘Moving Out’, where it is only being ‘on the brink of removal’ that makes it possible to ‘engage with the ins and outs’, and to benefit from ‘the startle of those double takes / which reinterpret truth’.
Lawrence Sail's retrospective, Waking Dreams: New & Selected Poems, a Poetry Book Society Special Commendation, was published by Bloodaxe in 2010, and followed by his later collections The Quick (2015), Guises (2020), and now, Double Takes (2026).
Praise for Lawrence Sail's poetry:
'There is a shimmering quality to Sail’s sensibility which moves easily between sharply focused observations of the particulars of object and place, the play of light on the locally loved and known, and a constant alertness to larger climates and movements…close and subtle looking and a rich, playful use of language are the tools by which discoveries are made.' – Peter Scupham, PN Review
'... a collection steeped in the recognition of what is, and what is of value, and what may be lost...By the end of this fine collection, we have recognised observation as an ethical value. We have also been reminded that our complacency about the health of the world is folly.' – Tony Roberts, Raceme
‘Spanning six decades, Lawrence’s work includes thirteen collections of poetry, each gliding from the personal and political to the thought-provoking and heartrending. His latest collection, Guises, incorporates topics as varied as astronauts, moths, Van Gogh, Olympic cyclists, and radishes. It also returns, time and again, to one of his favourite subjects, the West Country and its coasts.’ – Ben Jacob, Grow Exeter Magazine
'The poems can be demanding in their intricacy, inviting and rewarding rereading. They are highly reflective, thought made sensual via routes only poetry can take.' – Poetry Book Society Bulletin
'It is through microscopic attention to minutiae that Sail sees furthest.' – Andrew McCulloch, Times Literary Supplement
'Though Sail's work is quietly lyrical and almost undemonstrative at first scan, the poems reveal more and more to the active reader prepared to work hard to mine the gold.' – Patrick Lodge, Envoi
Lawrence Sail reads from Waking Dreams
Lawrence Sail reads six poems from Waking Dreams: New & Selected Poems: ‘The Cablecar’, ‘Departures’, ‘The Enclosures’, ‘Rain at Sea’, ‘Snooker Players’ and ‘At the Bedside’. Pamela Robertson-Pearce filmed him at his home in Exeter in November 2009. This film is included in the DVD-anthology In Person: World Poets (Bloodaxe Books, 2017).
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