The Nakedness of the Fathers, by Samuel Tongue

When Samuel Tongue produces a poetry pamphlet, I know that I am in for a treat.??It will be a thoughtful examination of the world in which we live, and it will be beautifully written.?Those are two major considerations for any poetry collection.

There are 24 poems in this collection, and not one of them misses its target.??The first poem, “Emergent Properties” is about our built environment, and specifically about churches within that environment.??It is very Celtic.??The first verse considers the churches built in remote places by hermits, and states clearly that no stone, no tree, no animal is worthless but all are part of the place in which they live.??The second verse considers the church in a city and how it is much more than a machine for living in.??From here, in other poems Samuel Tongue goes on to consider the impact of the environment on the people who live in cities.?I particularly liked the second poem wit its reference to Durban and the statement that “the white man does not walk” and how that changes both the character of the white man and the city in which he lives.

“The Nakedness of the Fathers” tell the story of Noah being found drunk and naked on is bed by his sons.?Samuel Tongue considers Noah’s drunkenness to be a reaction to the horrors of the Flood, seeing dead bodies of man and beast floating in the water.?It is a ghastly apparition, and a terrible reflection on what had been endured.

Samuel Tongue as one poem entitled “A Poem is like a Hedgehog” and that applies to all the poems in this collection.?They are prickly and can roll into a defensive ball, making sure that “the poem will sleep through the danger”.??The danger, of course, is being read and misunderstood.??But these poems have no need to be defensive.??They speak quite clearly about our world, particularly to poem called “Two Kingdoms” about visiting Russia, which has a special resonance at the moment.

This is a special collection in so many ways.?It is essential reading.