Sheds have come a long way since the man-cave cliché. These days, a shed is a far more democratic place – somewhere that symbolises the privacy and space that we all need.
 
John Greening’s wonderfully varied selection of poems explores sheds from every imaginable angle.
 
The poems take us to a child’s hiding place, a treasury of exotic implements and rich aromas and a retreat in which to remember the past. 
 
Derek Mahon’s fêted poem ‘A Disused Shed in Co. Wexford’ creates a mysterious inner world which seems to exist outside time.
 
A shed may just be a place to keep the lawnmower, or it may be somewhere to escape to in order to write or paint. Sometimes it’s a haven in which to daydream when the house is full of noise and bustle. Elsewhere it’s:
 
“A sea-side arbour, a garden shanty,
knocked together out of driftwood and furnished
with a beat-up sofa…”
from ‘Arbour’ by Kathleen Jamie
 
This enchanting selection leads the reader quietly into private worlds and makes the perfect gift for every shed-lover.
 
Poems by Fleur Adcock, Alison Brackenbury, John Greening, Stuart Henson, Kathleen Jamie, Derek Mahon, John McAuliffe, MR Peacocke, Carol Rumens, Vernon Scannell.
 
Cover illustration by David&Rews.