Cynthia Fuller’s writing is artistically polished but linguistically low-key, using simple syntax and vocabulary in a precise and evocative way. In the best poems the restraint of her style is a considerable strength. One such piece is “Encounter with Angels”, recounting a visit to Coventry Cathedral. It is composed in couplets formed not by rhyme but by being laid out in two-line stanzas. Here one sees very clearly how carefully achieved the restraint of Fuller’s writing is. It appears in the syntax, avoiding the drama of enjambement almost entirely, and using the coincidence of period with line or stanza to … Continue Reading