Taking one of the major Arcana of Tarot as the starting point for each of the poems, Jennifer A McGowan explores the joys and angst of adolescence, her father's falling out with the military, and many other themes in between. The Tarot has been used to play games since the 15th century. Since that time each card has also accumulated meanings. By the 18th century the tarot was used for divination or for oracular purposes, much like the Delphic oracles of old. Nowadays the trumps, or major arcana, are believed to chronicle, symbologically, the journey of the Fool through life. How to be a Tarot Card (or a Teenager) explores, exploits, and sometimes downright twists the major arcana and the meanings they have accumulated, in the order in which the many hundreds of tarot decks now travelling the world present them. The Star, connoting hope, exists simultaneously as metaphor and feral dog; the rebirth nestled inside the Death card becomes female friendship and escape from patriarchal binds. To revise means to re-see. These poems are revisionist, for what is poetry but a way of seeing, and what is the poet except the fool playing games, chronicling their journey?

With Paper for Feet is themed and narrative, drawing together Jennifer A. McGowan's poetry of myth and folktale, and the frailties - human and otherwise - behind them. Jennifer explores many voices including the women of Troy & many of Shakespeare's characters, as well as poems based in other cultures including France, Africa & China.

Back in September 2019 we were inspired by Lady Hale and distracted by her spider brooch. Then we realised we were coming up to our 8th Anniversary in August 2020. What better way to celebrate than with a book of Spider related stories and poems?