The Past in the Present
West Sussex Poems
Will be published approx. on 28. July 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
40 pages
978-1-80634-510-6 (ISBN)
Description
The Past in the Present contains seven poems of varying length and substance, from a 14-line sonnet to a four-page poem. Each poem is about a particular location in the glorious South Downs or the surrounding region.
The locations range from a single building, such as the famous 'Shepherds' Church' at Didling, to an extensive area such as the scenic escarpment along which the South Downs Way runs from west to east.
The poems are written in a clear, accessible style. They reflect John's love for these locations, combined with knowledge of their history, for example of lime-production at Amberley. They are animated by an awareness of the ways in which the past interacts with the present, so that, in the words of the opening poem, "The boundaries of time and place / Are here dissolved".
The poems are accompanied by seven pen-and-ink drawings by Philip Hood, one for each of the seven locations.
The locations range from a single building, such as the famous 'Shepherds' Church' at Didling, to an extensive area such as the scenic escarpment along which the South Downs Way runs from west to east.
The poems are written in a clear, accessible style. They reflect John's love for these locations, combined with knowledge of their history, for example of lime-production at Amberley. They are animated by an awareness of the ways in which the past interacts with the present, so that, in the words of the opening poem, "The boundaries of time and place / Are here dissolved".
The poems are accompanied by seven pen-and-ink drawings by Philip Hood, one for each of the seven locations.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Market Harborough
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 210 mm
Width: 148 mm
Thickness: 3 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-80634-510-6 (9781806345106)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
John Fitch is a classicist whose research interests lie primarily in Roman poetry. In 2013 he published Wildflowers of the Coast, a collection of his poems about the flowering plants of Canada's Pacific coast. John now lives in Chichester, where he continues to do research and to write poetry.