Advice for an Only Child

Working with a captivating economy of language allied with stunning powers of insight, Anja Konig documents a world that shifts between places, languages and emotions. The poems in Advice for an Only Child span the simplicity of observing nature in the city to the coming alive of a robot – and when the inevitable moments of heartbreak come, they are undercut with wit, keeping their “footprint[s] light”.  A remarkably confident debut.

“Once in a while we are lucky enough to be there when a fresh voice emerges; a poet who demonstrates in completely new ways how poetry does its job. Anja Konig reveals for us the chemistry of life and the physics of love. She celebrates the world with humour, insight and compassion but without nostalgia. It’s the moment that speaks so beautifully in her work.”- John Glenday