In Orbit

On receiving news of a beloved teacher's death, a man struggles with the loss of a relationship sustained by deep admiration. Memories of their shared trajectory are separated in three orbits where the man's past, present, and future seem to be punctuated by the same intense grief. Narrated by the man through his grieving process, In Orbit uses a variety of innovative forms to explore loss, from traditional stanzas to prose poems to shaped poems in the form of birds, circuits, or hands. The narrative shifts in time, moving from his teen years to the present day when he himself has become a teacher. Observations from the classroom as student and teacher illuminate the deep and compassionate work that educators can do, as well as the moving nature of student-teacher relationships. This book does not ignore that teaching is hard work, and in grieving over the death of his own mentor, the narrator finds himself rudderless.The book not only grieves the loss of the teacher, but also toxic standards for boys and men. In Orbit demands that young people to be given space to explore their feelings without judgement, to be free to love others, and to love themselves. Beyond human communities, however, sustenance is found in the moon, the stars, the sky, and nature. The discovery of a badger's track or the treasure of a bird egg reminds us how small our trajectories are in the context of the more-than-human: an answer perhaps to the grieving process.Ultimately, Glyn Edwards' collection is a deeply moving account of losing a person you love, but not shying away from remembering them. In Orbit is a sustained narrative of love, loss, and longing. 'These poems let me see the subject matter in an almost photographic way and they marry that descriptive brilliance with depth of perception. Here there is something worth seeing and something worth grasping.' - Angela Graham'Glyn Edwards is a true original who is not swamped or drowned out by channelling his predecessors from Shakespeare to Ted Hughes and beyond. He brings his own sharp observation, deep feeling and gift for language to the mix and makes everything his own. The poems of the natural world are breathtakingly vivid and the reader becomes gifted with the poet's ability to see with exceptional clarity and steadiness.' John Freeman'Edwards is a pilgrim, treading in others' footsteps, yet carving new paths in the poetic landscape. These journeys of homage are couched in rich, resonant language.'-Kathy Miles'I am struck by the intensity and vitality of language, how landscapes green into being, how words are like lines of the body. - K.S. Moore'Death is the ironic constant of life in these poems, often pondered over as both unnatural in its stark resolution and natural in its place as the final moment of all of our lived experiences.' - Alex Hubbard