Michael Laskey

'In Permission to Breathe, Michael Laskey shows himself to be our poetic Alan Bennett - a genius of, as it were, biscuit barrels and wry grief. Unflinching, subtle, clear, emotionally precise, uncensored, touching, occasionally erotic, particular, these are very, very good poems.'

'An edgy wit gives the poems a sharpness and clarity that is the hallmark of his distinctive brand of intelligent, feeling, writing.'

'Fluent, likeable, user-friendly poems.'

'There is an engaging warmth in these poems, and a remarkable imagination'

'A sustaining book, sensitive in insight and cadence'

'An unflinching celebration'