Poetry

"Poetry lifts the veil from the hidden beauty of the world, and makes familiar objects be as if they were not familiar."

Percy Bysshe Shelley

IN LIFE AS IN DEATH: A Love Story

Poetry: Paperback (80 pages), Ebook (102 pages)

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Penned by a world poet, In Life as In Death is a rich profusion of a book on love in South Africa, its early romance, its later dark surprises. This true story is told through an easy-to-read epic narrative poem that sings on the page, followed by cycles or ‘flights’ of interlinking poetry, a story of how history intervenes in love’s progression. Set against a political backdrop of our time, it reveals love’s strength, frailties, passions, of a pregnancy unable to be carried, a story of a couple’s brief engagement dissolved by a history beyond their control…

"Unzip our cocoons under heated moonglow -

and with no more than a whispered: "Yes !"

give yourself up to this transparent nature

as I, transparent as in this naked night.

(Stanza 10, Canto 1)

I follow your eyes, the entrancing you

reveals that my love will travel distance

has come to you, left another place:

for love’s anchor digs deeper into love.

(Stanza 32, Canto 2)

The poet, however, friend of emotions –

is able to listen to the heart of another,

to not only hear the beat, but interrogate

the scope of pulse to every little flutter."

(Stanza 68, Canto 3)

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“Excellent contributions to Staffrider.”

Andries Oliphant (Editor)

“A cycle of poems reinforcing each other.”

Michael King (Contrast)

“The splendid Brandon Broll.”

Josephine Austin (Hastings Poetry Festival, 1991)

Poetry: Paperback (89 pages), Ebook (78 pages)

This is the first published volume of NOT MERELY WHITE: South African Poems, comprising fifty five early poems written by Brandon Broll in South Africa over the period 1986-88. As a biologist at the time, Broll's keen poetic eye imparts a descriptive depth and vibrancy to the beauty of the Cape landscape, while his razor observation of the everyday apartheid politics propelled him to become chairman of the Civil Rights League before having to flee to Britain in 1990.

Some of these poems were published at the time in South African literary magazines, then in Britain, and by 1994, Broll was invited to submit his biography to the International Who's Who in Poetry and Poet's Encyclopaedia. In part, this honour lay in the reputation of these early poems, yet this volume remained unpublished for over 35 years.

These poems offer the poet’s experience of a contrasting palette of war and struggle under apartheid, of everyday thoughts, of love, and of the rugged, fertile and imposing South Western Cape landscape.

NOT MERELY WHITE: South African Poems

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STILL-LIFE OF A PANDEMIC:

Expanded Edition

Poetry: Paperback (77 pages), Ebook (61 pages)

Readers of Still-life of a Pandemic describe it as an “easily readable” and “brilliant” account of the Covid-19 pandemic, “written with pathos and understanding of these unprecedented times”. Garnering reviews of being “heart-rending” while “humane and accessible”, it is penned by a world poet. This book takes us beyond how the media, politicians and scientists portrayed the pandemic, to the heart of intensely personal experiences of ordinary people, the heroic and the unspoken.

Early in the pandemic in summer 2020, the first edition of this book appeared. It explored the Street of the Hollow Eyes with a haunting reality in which an ordinary family of four was trying to get on in these times when the father develops a fever. In this third edition of the book, Living the Lockdowns and The Covid-19 Vaccine Race are added to expand the original reach of Still-life of a Pandemic into subjects of national and international importance.

Amazon Review: ***** (UK)

A haunting account!

In years to come, this book will remind us how we were feeling during the pandemic and the incredible effect it had around the world.

Amazon Review: ***** (UK)

Touching, thoughtful, heartfelt, but above all approachable

I'm not one for reading poetry, I should admit, but I've been looking at a few since this lockdown has hit us. Although Broll's verse appears simple, that brevity belies a rich intensity of emotion beneath. It makes the poem approachable and easy to read, it has a lot to say, but also rewards reading over and over. Simple phrases seem to have surprising layers of meaning, which is skilful. I'm glad I read it, and it has encouraged me to read more!