Dole Anthems

Poetry by Paul Tanner

Reviewed by Amanda DeAngeles

Funny angry verse from the job centre
Hard-boiled rants on working-class life
SOCIAL PROTEST MASQUERADING AS POETRY

I read the first poem and was on page thirty when I next looked up. Soon, I read it all - every word. Dole Anthems is brave and hateful and fascinating. Tanner’s authorial gob slips its tongue, tripping and dripping over the theme.

It has bitterness, rhythm, truth and is a masterful tantrum of he-who-demands-to-be-heard. However, it's Dole Anthems unspoken hope which shines through and grabs me most.

After reading it I felt completely shagged.

It is available from www.lulu.com/spotlight/TANNER, a poetry night near you, or from our beloved News From Nowhere in Bold Street, Liverpool.

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