Poetry review – A LEXICON OF LONGING: Jennifer Johnson appreciates the example set by Kevin Saving’s accomplished use of formal techniques
A Lexicon of Longing – Selected Verses 1977-2026
Kevin Saving
Caparison
ISBN 978-1-0687475-4-0
pp. 62 £10.00
Kevin Saving was born in Wilmslow where he lived for many years. He trained as a psychiatric nurse and worked in the caring professions before retiring to Shetland. He has four previously published collections: A Brand of Day (1994), Rough Bearings (2005), Miracle and Mirage (Caparison, 2010) and A World of Absence (Lapwing Publications, Belfast, 2017). He has also written reviews for London Grip and The Recusant. This collection, selected by Alan Morrison, consists of a selection of poems from each of these plus some later poems from the more recent Short-Haul Ferry.
In the thoughtful ‘Foreword’ to A Lexicon of Longing, Morrison places Saving’s work as being closest to “high formalism” telling us that Saving was one of the formalists who emerged from the formal poetry revival in the 90s. He is part of a significant group in the UK which includes Glyn Maxwell, Christopher Norris and Alison Brackenbury (an admirer of Saving). Formal poetry emphasises sound rather than imagery. It often reads more like formal speech sometimes using the universal “we” rather than the more common conversational “I”. Saving’s verse, brief and sometimes epigrammatic, covers a variety of subjects. I will illustrate the points mentioned by considering some lines from a few of his poems.
The poem I consider first is the octosyllabic villanelle ‘A Theft of Loneliness’ selected from A Brand of Day. The poem begins
A theft of loneliness we take,
if conscience dictates, we strike free
and vows of kindredness we break.
Morrison tells us that “rhyme is of paramount importance to Saving”. As well as the “take”/”break” rhyme at the end of lines 1 & 3 which links those words, there is also an internal rhyme “loneliness”/ “kindredness”. The word “kindredness” is an appealing invention in which the “ness” suffix has turned “kindred” into an abstract noun. This adds an unusual flavour to the poem.
Interestingly, the universal “we” used in the first 5 triplets shifts to the personal “I” in the final stanza shown below. This may be to emphasise the persona’s inclusion in the universal.
I’ll walk my path though mountains shake
snatch all my sad clay grants to me.
This theft of loneliness I take;
these vows of kindredness I break.
There is also some effective alliteration between snatch and sad connecting these words.
The second poem I want to look at is ‘The Repossession’ from Rough Bearings. This poem consists of three octosyllabic 6-line stanzas of couplets using alternate rhyme. It begins
We sift the dusty residue …
Does there not seem some presence here:
not only that of vandals who
just defaecate then disappear
but something permeating through
the soaking floors and soaked-up years?
Did this dank house to mould and rot
once echo raucous children’s calls?
The setting appears to be a derelict house. The inclusive “we” pronoun is used here and not the personal “I”. This use of formal verse initially creates an elevated tone, but this is undercut by the words defaecate, soaking, soaked-up, dank and raucous. This makes it a modern poem in what would have been once called the mock-heroic tradition. The enjoyment of adjectives in this poem is refreshing when we have been told so often to “fear adjectives” (Bunting). The alliteration of defaecate and disappear emphasise the now dusty emptiness of what was once a home. The question mark perhaps suggests the uncertainty of this memory.
Another poem in which the subject appears interestingly at odds with the dignity of the formal verse is ‘House-Fly’ from Miracle and Mirage. This poem consists of five triplets of iambic pentameter with an ABA rhyme scheme. It begins
When times were hard he found a place to lie.
He’d watch his seed rise up from rank odure,
at putrefaction’s table take his fill.
“Odure” is a literary, archaic word used perhaps for its unusual sound and appeal to the poet. It contrasts with elevated tone of the formal verse as does “Putrefaction’s table”. The formal way in which the fly “takes his fill” mixes language registers by using this formal expression for a fly feeding. This poem brings to mind ‘The Flea’ by Donne and, interestingly, Saving’s triolet ‘Response to John Donne’ also appears in this selection.
From the same collection is a humorous poem describing an experience most writers have had. The poem called ‘Rejection Villanelle’ is written in the voice of the rejecter. It begins
We read your work with interest.
Although it’s not quite for us
we wish you the very best.
As all our rivals would attest,
a far less “retro” style’s “a must”
The rejection is, of course, a standard one. The “interest”/ “best” rhyme emphasises its clichéd nature showing the rejecter’s lack of “interest”. Any poetry written in what the rejecter calls a “retro” style will be automatically rejected. The rejecter clearly dislikes formal verse.
Another poem which uses an unusual voice is ‘Pegahorn’ from ‘Short-Haul Ferry’. ‘Pegahorn’ is written in the voice of the Pegahorn (a mythical horned Pegasus creature popular in recent children’s literature and sometimes called a Pegacorn). The poem, written in rhyming couplets, begins
In wintry stable where I was born
(where none had seen a pegacorn).
Imagine then the stunned surprise
when first my head met others’ eyes –
This form reminds the reader of children’s poems complete with the inversion “when first my head” which would be forbidden in most workshops. In this case I think it gives the language of the pegacorn a reassuringly old-fashioned register of speech suitable for a mythical creature. The full end-rhymes sound like the trot of a horse.
I would recommend this book to anyone who appreciates skill in writing formal verse which Saving shows plenty of in A Lexicon of Longing. For readers of other poetry, it serves as a reminder that there are poetic alternatives to free verse and that formal verse can be used effectively to explore contemporary subjects.
Nov 9 2026
London Grip Poetry Review – Kevin Saving
Poetry review – A LEXICON OF LONGING: Jennifer Johnson appreciates the example set by Kevin Saving’s accomplished use of formal techniques
A Lexicon of Longing – Selected Verses 1977-2026
Kevin Saving
Caparison
ISBN 978-1-0687475-4-0
pp. 62 £10.00
Kevin Saving was born in Wilmslow where he lived for many years. He trained as a psychiatric nurse and worked in the caring professions before retiring to Shetland. He has four previously published collections: A Brand of Day (1994), Rough Bearings (2005), Miracle and Mirage (Caparison, 2010) and A World of Absence (Lapwing Publications, Belfast, 2017). He has also written reviews for London Grip and The Recusant. This collection, selected by Alan Morrison, consists of a selection of poems from each of these plus some later poems from the more recent Short-Haul Ferry.
In the thoughtful ‘Foreword’ to A Lexicon of Longing, Morrison places Saving’s work as being closest to “high formalism” telling us that Saving was one of the formalists who emerged from the formal poetry revival in the 90s. He is part of a significant group in the UK which includes Glyn Maxwell, Christopher Norris and Alison Brackenbury (an admirer of Saving). Formal poetry emphasises sound rather than imagery. It often reads more like formal speech sometimes using the universal “we” rather than the more common conversational “I”. Saving’s verse, brief and sometimes epigrammatic, covers a variety of subjects. I will illustrate the points mentioned by considering some lines from a few of his poems.
The poem I consider first is the octosyllabic villanelle ‘A Theft of Loneliness’ selected from A Brand of Day. The poem begins
A theft of loneliness we take,
if conscience dictates, we strike free
and vows of kindredness we break.
Morrison tells us that “rhyme is of paramount importance to Saving”. As well as the “take”/”break” rhyme at the end of lines 1 & 3 which links those words, there is also an internal rhyme “loneliness”/ “kindredness”. The word “kindredness” is an appealing invention in which the “ness” suffix has turned “kindred” into an abstract noun. This adds an unusual flavour to the poem.
Interestingly, the universal “we” used in the first 5 triplets shifts to the personal “I” in the final stanza shown below. This may be to emphasise the persona’s inclusion in the universal.
I’ll walk my path though mountains shake
snatch all my sad clay grants to me.
This theft of loneliness I take;
these vows of kindredness I break.
There is also some effective alliteration between snatch and sad connecting these words.
The second poem I want to look at is ‘The Repossession’ from Rough Bearings. This poem consists of three octosyllabic 6-line stanzas of couplets using alternate rhyme. It begins
We sift the dusty residue …
Does there not seem some presence here:
not only that of vandals who
just defaecate then disappear
but something permeating through
the soaking floors and soaked-up years?
Did this dank house to mould and rot
once echo raucous children’s calls?
The setting appears to be a derelict house. The inclusive “we” pronoun is used here and not the personal “I”. This use of formal verse initially creates an elevated tone, but this is undercut by the words defaecate, soaking, soaked-up, dank and raucous. This makes it a modern poem in what would have been once called the mock-heroic tradition. The enjoyment of adjectives in this poem is refreshing when we have been told so often to “fear adjectives” (Bunting). The alliteration of defaecate and disappear emphasise the now dusty emptiness of what was once a home. The question mark perhaps suggests the uncertainty of this memory.
Another poem in which the subject appears interestingly at odds with the dignity of the formal verse is ‘House-Fly’ from Miracle and Mirage. This poem consists of five triplets of iambic pentameter with an ABA rhyme scheme. It begins
When times were hard he found a place to lie.
He’d watch his seed rise up from rank odure,
at putrefaction’s table take his fill.
“Odure” is a literary, archaic word used perhaps for its unusual sound and appeal to the poet. It contrasts with elevated tone of the formal verse as does “Putrefaction’s table”. The formal way in which the fly “takes his fill” mixes language registers by using this formal expression for a fly feeding. This poem brings to mind ‘The Flea’ by Donne and, interestingly, Saving’s triolet ‘Response to John Donne’ also appears in this selection.
From the same collection is a humorous poem describing an experience most writers have had. The poem called ‘Rejection Villanelle’ is written in the voice of the rejecter. It begins
We read your work with interest.
Although it’s not quite for us
we wish you the very best.
As all our rivals would attest,
a far less “retro” style’s “a must”
The rejection is, of course, a standard one. The “interest”/ “best” rhyme emphasises its clichéd nature showing the rejecter’s lack of “interest”. Any poetry written in what the rejecter calls a “retro” style will be automatically rejected. The rejecter clearly dislikes formal verse.
Another poem which uses an unusual voice is ‘Pegahorn’ from ‘Short-Haul Ferry’. ‘Pegahorn’ is written in the voice of the Pegahorn (a mythical horned Pegasus creature popular in recent children’s literature and sometimes called a Pegacorn). The poem, written in rhyming couplets, begins
In wintry stable where I was born
(where none had seen a pegacorn).
Imagine then the stunned surprise
when first my head met others’ eyes –
This form reminds the reader of children’s poems complete with the inversion “when first my head” which would be forbidden in most workshops. In this case I think it gives the language of the pegacorn a reassuringly old-fashioned register of speech suitable for a mythical creature. The full end-rhymes sound like the trot of a horse.
I would recommend this book to anyone who appreciates skill in writing formal verse which Saving shows plenty of in A Lexicon of Longing. For readers of other poetry, it serves as a reminder that there are poetic alternatives to free verse and that formal verse can be used effectively to explore contemporary subjects.