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Jean ‘Binta’ Breeze’s new collection is ‘The Verandah Poems’ (Bloodaxe). For Jean, the Verandah is an important metaphor for the space of the poem; it’s a liminal space which allows the poet to write about internal and external landscapes. She reads poems from the collection musing on subjects such as her daughter leaving home, and the stories spun by passing strangers.

Karen was nominated for the Forward Poetry Prize for best first collection for ‘An Aviary of Small Birds’ (Carcanet). As part of the ‘Three Score and Ten’ series of new poems celebrating Radio 3’s 70th anniversary, Karen has written ‘Conversation with Water’. The poem is written in the Japanese ‘zuihitsu’ style, which blends prose, poetry and personal reflection. The poem is accompanied by a soundscape by Andrea Allegra. 

Cultural historian Katy Layton-Jones explores the changes in the language we used to talk about the city in the 18th and 19th centuries, examining the idea of the city as ‘bastion’ and as ‘crucible’, and how different eras associate the city with progress, excitement, regression or anxiety. Her latest book, ‘Beyond the Metropolis’ is published by Manchester University Press.

The author Rebecca Solnit has edited a series of atlases which reimagine cities (along with co-editor Joshua Jelly-Shapiro). The latest is called ‘Nonstop Metropolis’, a series of essays and maps which show alternative histories of New York by celebrating its songs, its riots and creating a subway map of notable women.