A Newer Wilderness

Nicola Healey, MA 2005; PhD 2009

Nicola Healey’s first poetry pamphlet chronicles a complex and lengthy illness – the much-misunderstood condition of anorexia. The title, A Newer Wilderness, is taken from Emily Dickinson, who feels very much a kindred spirit in these intimate, haunting explorations of a deep reality in which nature plays a fundamental role in supporting human resilience and survival.

‘Nicola Healey is a fiercely honest and deeply compassionate poet who isn’t afraid to tackle the difficult issues head-on. In this riveting sequence of poems, she demonstrates how, in the unnatural world of illness, diagnosis and treatment, it is our close communion with the natural world that allows the self to be recognised and the soul to be healed.’ – John Glenday

‘These are remarkable poems – concise and precise, both felt and lived. Healey’s is a compelling, dynamic and supple voice and these are poems finely honed, with rare articulacy and insight.’ – Declan Ryan

ISBN: 9781915968043